Review: Insurgent, Veronica Roth

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (HarperTeen)
Pages: 525 (Hardback)
Release: May 2012
Genre: YA, dystopian
Source: Bought
Good to know: Summit Entertainment, the studio that made the Twilight - movies, have bought the movierights to the trilogy. Book 3 is apparently being released some time in 2013.

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 grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love. Tris's initiation day should have been marked by 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 so.

A good follow - up to Divergent 
(This review contains spoilers if you have not read Divergent yet)

I have been waiting a long time for the sequel to Divergent, one of my favorite books of 2011. I preordered the book as soon as I could, but I did not have time to wait for the book arriving in the mail, so I also bought the kindle - edition of the book. I can now state that Insurgent also is a great read.

The story in Insurgent picks up where Divergent ended. There are more things on stake for Tris, and she must fight for her own life as well for the lives of the people she believe in and love. Someone has the need to find out what secrets the Divergents hide in their brains, conflicts are brewing and people must choose sides. There are some surprising revelations, and Tris begins to question the meaning of the faction - system.

I read somewhere, once, that crying defies scientific explanation. Tears are only meant to lubricate the eyes. There is no real reason for tear glands to overproduce tears at the behest of emotion.  I think we cry to release the animal parts of us without losing our humanity. Because inside me is a beast that snarls, and growls, and strains toward freedom, toward Tobias and, above all, toward life.

Insurgent is, as Divergent was, a real pageturner. There is not a dull section in the book. I was thrown from page to page, reading about suspense and dramatic events.

I also like the fact that we get to know all the characters and the releationships between them even better in this book. I specifically like how the author spends time developing the relationship between Four and Tris. She does that very believeable, without use of cliches. Tris has a great development. There are a lot of great character-descriptions in the book, much more so than in Divergent. That is a natural thing. In bok 1 there is a need to set the story and the plot, to show the reader the characters. In bok 2, the author may dive deeper into the people on the pages and the story.

Evil depends on where you're standing

The language is also good, not one sentence appears to be in vain. Everything is so perfectly built up. There are also a lot of nice quotes.

Grief is not as heavy as guilt, but it takes more away from you.

The last part of the book is so suspenseful, and the ending just wants me to grab the third book rightaway. How will I be able to wait until 2013 to know what happens???

I still believe that this series will be the next Hunger Games. The books have everything: suspense, romance, mystery, dramatic events, great characters etc. I love Roth's worldbuilding in the books, the thought behind every faction and the way they are described.

If you have read Divergent, you can really look forward to this book. If not, you need to read Divergent right now! This is an awesome series!

Other reviews:
Empire of Books
Magical Urban Fantasy Reads
Mundie Moms

Review: Bliss, Kathryn Littlewood

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Pages: 374 (Hardback)
Release: February 2012
Source: Bought
Genre: Middle - grade readers
Good to know: Bliss is Littlewoods debutnovel, and it is the first book in a planned trilogy.You can read an excerpt here.

Rosemary Bliss’s family has a secret. It’s the Bliss Cookery Booke—an ancient, leather-bound volume of enchanted recipes like Stone Sleep Snickerdoodles and Singing Gingersnaps. Rose and her siblings are supposed to keep the Cookery Booke under lock and whisk-shaped key while their parents are out of town, but then a mysterious stranger shows up. “Aunt” Lily rides a motorcycle, wears purple sequins, and whips up exotic (but delicious) dishes for dinner. Soon boring, nonmagical recipes feel like life before Aunt Lily—a lot less fun. So Rose and her siblings experi-ment with just a couple of recipes from the forbidden Cookery Booke.A few Love Muffins and a few dozen Cookies of Truth couldn’t cause too much trouble . . . could they?

Sweet magic

Kathryn Littlewood have written an incredibly cute story about believing in oneself, family ties, loyalty and magic.

Rose' parents, or Rosemary as is her full name,own the Bliss Bakery. Here they make cookies, cakes, breads etc after recepies that have been in the family for generations. Their pastries is very sought after, and there are always a lot to do on the bakery. Rose is ten years old when she discovers that an important ingredient in the pastries is magic.

It was the summer Rosemary Bliss turned ten that she saw her mother fold a lightning bolt into a bowl of batter and learned - beyond the shadow of a doubt - that her parents made magic in the Bliss bakery.

The family lives in the little town Calamity Falls, where their pastries means alot to the other residents. They use food to sove small and big problems for the residents, literally speaking. Old Mr Rook was having trouble with sleepwalking, but after eating Stone Sleep Snickerdoodles, the sleepwalking stopped. The Bliss - family also helps out when a singer has a sore throat, or people get ill.

When the flu hits Humbleton, Rose' parents are asked to travel there to help the people get well. Their almond - croissant are perfect for that. Rose and her brother Ty are left to take care of the bakery, and they are told not to look in the book with all the recipies in it, and mot important of all: not use magic. But Rose and Ty does not do as they were told. They look in the famous cookbook, and goes down to the secret basement where their parents keep a lot of special ingredients. The result: chaos in Calamity Falls.  On top of all of this, they are visited by their aunt Lily - a relative their parents does not keep contact with because of a centuries old familiefeud. Lily seems very interested in the cookbook...

Ty read the recipe out loud: Sir Jasper Bliss did grate one large green squash while chanting the names of lonely customers thrice. Sir Jasper did pass through a metal sieve one fist of flour and one fist of sugar. Sir Jasper did drizzle two acorns of the finest distille Tahitian vanilla over the flour. Then he did fold within the batter one egg of the Masked Lovebird, Agapornis personata, which Sir Jasper did acquire from a mystic who had collected them from the primordial forests of Madagascar.

It is hard not to be charmed by this book. It is really cute, and it is apparent that the author has had a good time whilst writing it. The book have a lot of creative twist and turns, and the recepies are truly original and creative.  I cannot compare the book fully with the Harry Potter - books, but it is not hard to see that Littlewood has the same imagination as do J.K. Rowling.

Rose is a character that many young girls will sympatizes and identify with. She feels that her parents doesn't see her, she is unsure about herself and about her parents love for her. She dreams of a special bou, and about being noticed. During the story she has to figure out if her own self-realization is important, or if she should focus on her family. Rose does not have confidence in herself, and all she wants is to help others and do something useful.
Rose' brother Ty is a little more outgoing, and he happily uses his parents magic recepies to his own gain, but the result is not what he expects at all.

Littlewood deal with a lot of important topics. First of all, this is a coming of age - story, a story about maturing, getting older and the fact that it is quite possible to change without the use of magic. It is about sticking together, about family and loyalty.

I think that this book will appeal to thee target-audience. Bliss is a cute and riveting book, even I got caught up in the story. I also like that the author have given a title to every chapter, and that there are cutre drawings on the first page of every new chapter.

The book has a satisfiying ending, but there is a tiny cliffhanger here which tells us that there will be more books about Rose, her family and the Bliss - bakery. It will not surprise me if these books become a great success. The book is also great for being made into a movie.
But before you do read Bliss, I need to give you a little warning: You may feel a deep craving after cookies and muffins whilst you are reading.

Other reviews:
Book Aunt
Booklady's Booknotes

Review: Heaven by Christoph Marzi

Publisher:Mangschou (Norwegian publisher)
Pages: 360
Release: September 2011
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Source: Bought
Challenge: None this year, read it in 2011
Good to know: This book was first published in Germany in 2009 and last year it came out in Norwegian. The book was published in English February 2nd this year.

The night that Heaven lost her heart was cold and moonless. But the blade that sliced it out was warm with her dark blood... David Pettyfer is taking a shortcut over the dark rooftops of London's brooding houses, when he literally stumbles across Heaven: a strange, beautiful, distraught girl who says that bad men have stolen her heart. Yet she's still alive... And so begins David and Heaven's wild, exciting and mysterious adventure - to find Heaven's heart, and to discover the incredible truth about her origins. Part thriller, part love story and part fairy tale, this brilliantly original novel from a bestselling German author will take your breath away...

A Great Fantasy

Heaven has one of the best storylines I have encountered in a YA - novel. Nothing in this book is predictable, the surprises are many and the suspense is high.

Parts of London is covered with a nightsky without stars. It has been like this a long time and for David Pettyfer, who works in the bookstore The Owl and the Pussycat, this is normal. David's work consists of delivering books, often rare books, to customers in London. He likes to take a shortcut over the rooftops of London's brooding houses whilst on his way with a book. David has had a troubled past, but the job in the bookstore is a new beginning for him. One night, David runs into Heaven on a rooftop ...

Heaven, or Freema Mirrlees as she also is called, is an orphan. She tells David that some bad men have stolen her heart. David does not know what to believe, but he soons finds out that someone is after Heaven. He have to help keep Heaven hidden and at the same time figure out why the men are chasing her.

I have read a lot of YA - novels in the past years, a lot of them have a similar storyline. You know what's going to happen, who will fall in love with whom etc. In Heaven you cannot predict anything. Marzi have created a fantastic and thrilling story with a mystery that is slowly unveiled as you flip the pages. There are a lot of paranormal elements in the story too, like zombies and ghosts.

It is not hard to guess that Marzi loves the victorian era and the writers that lived in this time. Heaven is kind of like a love poem to the city of London and a lot of the characters in the story have been given names from characters in Dickens' stories. The book made me want to read a story by Dickens again.

Marzi is a musiclover and there is a lot of references to songlyrics in the novel. He also got the idea for the novel itself from a song, Chim Chim Cher-ee, as sung by Dick van Duke and Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins.

The language in the book is not that consistent. Marzi knows how to write poetically and the book is full of beautiful quotes and observartions. But, at the same time, there are a lot of repetitions and clichees here.

Heaven was an interesting character. It takes some time for the reader to get under her skin, but I liked that. Jeg was constantly wondering what had happened to her in the past, why her parents had died and why the men where out for her heart. Marzi kept me guessing until the final pages in the book.

This book is not a part of a series. Keep in mind that Heaven is not a book for the younger readers. There is a lot of swearing in the book, the characters are thinking abous sex and have dealt with alcohol and drugs.

If you love London, Dickens and Urban Fantasy you should pick up this book. It is great! And if you do not love London and Dickens, pick up the book anyway and read it.

(I do not have any quotes this time since I read this book in Norwegian)

Other reviews:
Lost Among the Shelves
Bloggers Heart Books
A Cupcake and a Latte

The English cover for the book:

Review: The Name of the Star, Mauren Johnson

Publisher:Putnam Juvenile
Pages:370 (Hardback)
Genre: YA, paranormal
Release:September 2011
Source: Review copy from BEA
Challenge: None this year, read in 2011
Nice to know:The first book in Johnson's new series Shades of London.

The day Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London marks a memorable occasion. For Rory, it's the start of a new life at a London boarding school. But for many, this will be remembered as the day a series of brutal murders broke out across the city, gruesome crimes mimicking the horrific Jack the Ripper events of more than a century ago.

Soon "Rippermania" takes hold of modern-day London, and the police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man police believe to be the prime suspect. But she is the only one who saw him. Even her roommate, who was walking with her at the time, didn't notice the mysterious man. So why can only Rory see him? And more urgently, why has Rory become his next target? In this edge-of-your-seat thriller, full of suspense, humor, and romance, Rory will learn the truth about the secret ghost police of London and discover her own shocking abilities.

A Great Storyteller

Maureen Johnson has her own way of telling a story. She writes with humour and entusiasm, and her personality shines through the pages of the book.

In the Name of the Star we get to meet Rory Deveraux. She arrives in London to go to a boarding school, men her stay in this city will be a lot more thrilling than she could ever have imagined. Soon a series of murders takes place, every murder a copy of one of Jack the Ripper's murders. Rory finds herself a witness to one of them, but what has she actually seen?

I had huge expectations for this book. I am deeply fascinated by the myths surrounding Jack the Ripper, and I have read a lot of books about this infamous murderer. I also happen to love London and I love stories that takes place here.

The English will play hockey in any weather. Thunder, lightning, plague of locusts... nothing can stop the hockey. Do not fight the hockey, for the hockey will win.

Johnson's book is off to a good start, and I like her way of writing a story. As I mentioned earlier, I think she is a great storyteller. She does not take herself too seriously, and neither does the characters in her book. She writes with so much humour and spunk, and avoids the big clichés. She also have a lot of funny observations when it comes to the English people and their culture.

Rory is an interesting and great character who seems to embody a lot of Johnson's spirit. She also has a natural and believable development throughout the book.

There is not a lot of romance and love in this book, this aspect takes second place to the big mystery surrounding the murders. I do not mind that. Sometimes the love story takes up to much space in YA - fiction, in the Name of the Star this have been given a natural place. Not too much and not too little.

Kissing is something that makes up for a lot of the other crap you have to put up with in school and as a teenager in general.

No guy had ever asked me if I wanted to talk, not like that. Not like a talk, talk kind of talk - if this was, in fact, a talk, talk "can we talk?" Or whatever.

The book has a thrilling beginning, but the suspense is not sustained throughout the book. There is, though, some interesting twists to the mystery, the problem is it takes too long for anything to really happen. I sat and wanted more as I read and flipped the pages. But for those of you who love paranormal YA, there is a lot of things in the book you would enjoy. The ending came as a complete surprise to me, nothing is what it seems.

I will pick up the next installment in this story because I loved Johnson's writing. The book does not have a cliffhanger, so you can pick it up if you do not normally buy a book in a series.

Other reviews:
The Book Smugglers (OBS: spoilers)
Sam Downing
YA Bibliophile

Review: Cold Kiss, Amy Garvey

Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 304 (Hardcover)
Genre: YA, paranormal romance
Release: September 2011
Source: Book Expo America
Good to know: This is Garvey's first book for teens. It is a standalone, and not the first book in a series.

It was a beautiful, warm summer day, the day Danny died.Suddenly Wren was alone and shattered. In a heartbroken fury, armed with dark incantations and a secret power, Wren decides that what she wants—what she must do—is to bring Danny back.But the Danny who returns is just a shell of the boy Wren fell in love with. His touch is icy; his skin, smooth and stiff as marble; his chest, cruelly silent when Wren rests her head against it.Wren must keep Danny a secret, hiding him away, visiting him at night, while her life slowly unravels around her. Then Gabriel DeMarnes transfers to her school, and Wren realizes that somehow, inexplicably, he can sense the powers that lie within her—and that he knows what she has done. And now Gabriel wants to help make things right.But Wren alone has to undo what she has wrought—even if it means breaking her heart all over again.

Beautiful and gripping

Cold Kiss can be described as a cross between Pet Sematary and Shiver.


Wren loves Danny with all her heart, and her world falls to pieces the day Danny dies in a car accident. She cannot live without Danny, and decides to use her special powers to bring him back to life. But things does not play out the way Wren planned. Danny is not acting like he used to before the accident. There is also a new boy at Wren's school, and suddenly she begins to doubt her feelings for Danny. She regrets bringing Danny back to life, but there is to late for regret now...

I wanted him back. I wanted him back so much I couldn't think about anything else. Everywhere I looked was suddenly somewhere Danny wasn't. My hands were empy because Danny wasn't holding them. My room echoed with quiet because Danny wasn't there whispering ridiculous things to make me laugh, or make me shiver.  (...)Danny was mine, I was his, and that wasn't going to work if he was dead. So I would make him not dead...

Garvey writes about something most of us can relate too; how it feels like to loose someone we love. I know that I have thought many times that I wish I could spend some more time with loved ones that have passed. Wren acts out on this longing, she brings the love of her life back from the dead. But soon Wren realise that it is not safe to mess with nature.

I am the kid who sticks her finger in the light socket. I am the person who doesn't check the expiration date on the milk. I am the idiot who has never looked before she leaped. I am the girl who is falling apart, right now.

Cold Kiss also deal with darker issues; the love Wren feels for Danny turns to a form of obsession after he dies. She wants to be with him no matter what. She does not reflect upon how it must be for Danny to be brought back to life, a life where he is hidden from everyone he once knew, aside from Wren. Danny exists only for Wren, it is all about her feelings.

I wrote that the book is a cross between Pet Sematary and Shiver. As with Pet Sematary, Cold Kiss is also about what happens when you bring someone back from the dead, and the person brought back is not the same person you knew before. When I mention Shiver, it is because Garvey has a writing pretty similar to that of Maggie Stiefvater. She has some beautiful quotes and passages.

I  liked some parts of the story, and the fact that the book is seeping with emotion. But I thought the story was too slow paced, nothing really happens until the second half of the book. The first half is all about how Wren regrets bringing Danny back, and it is not intereresting to read only about that from chapter to chapter. But when Wren talks more with Gabriel, things really kick off.

It wasn't love right away, because nothing ever is, no matter what the songs say, but it was the start of it. A beginning in one way, and the end in another. I think that might always be true of love.

I love that some authors still writes paranormal novels that are not part of a series, that in itself is a good reason to read this book. I have not read a lot about zombies before either, and that was also refreshing. Cold kiss is a beautiful written book that will appeal to those who like a slowpaced book that grips you.

Other reviews:
The Book Smugglers
Book Briefs
The Diary of a Bookworm

Amy Garvey is on Goodreads and has her own website here.

Review: Crossed, Ally Condie

Publisher: Dutton Books
Pages: 384 (Hardcover)
Genre: YA, dystopian, sci-fi
Release: November 1th 2011
Source: BEA
Good to know: The sequel to Matched. This series is going to be a trilogy.

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

Poetical dystopian

I had high expectations for Crossed since I loved Matched so much. I liked this book too, but it did not live up to my expectations.

Cassia finds herself in a whole new place, and she begins to search for Ky. Ky, on the other hand, is doing his best to survive and he manage to find new allies and friends.

Condie has a beautiful writing style and she is one of the best writers in the Ya - universe. Her writing is poetical, with a few words and sentences she is able to say so much. Sometimes I just stop my reading and reflect over something she has written. There are so many great quotes, so many good observations. It is simply a joy to read.

Because in the end you can't always choose what to keep. You can only choose how you let it go.

If you love someone, if someone loved you, if they taught you to write and made it so you could speak, how can you do nothing at all? You might as well tahe their words out of the dirt and try to snatch them from the wind. Because once you love, it is gone. You love and you cannot call it back

Love changes what is probable and makes unlikely things possible.

My biggest problem with this book, is that the story is too slowpaced. It takes too long before there is any real action, and once the book was finished I still had a lot of questions that were not answered. I longed for more. More information about the Society for one.

Loving him gave me wings and all my work has given me the strength to move them.

The narrative in the story shifts between Ky and Cassia. I liked that, since I felt we got to know each of them better. But what surprised me was that I felt a lot more sympathy towards Ky, he is a much more complex and interesting character than Cassia - at least in this book he is.

Even though I felt the story lacked something, I will still recommend the book. The writing style is, in itself, something that should make you read the book. I hope I will get more answers in the third book, because I will read it. I cannot get enough of Condie's prose.

Other reviews:
The Story Siren
Amy Reads
Sash & Em


Visit the Matched trilogy here.

Review: The Russian Concubine, Kate Furnivall

Publisher: Sphere
Pages: 592
Genre: Historical fiction
Release: November 2007
Source: Bought
Nice to know: This is Kate Furnivall's debutnovel. The story is inspired by the experiences of Furnivall's own mother. The sequel is called The Concubine's Secret /The Girl from Junchow, and there is also a prequel called the Jewel of St Petersburg.

Exiled from Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution, the beautiful and fiery Lydia and her aristocratic mother have taken refuge in Junchow, China, in 1928. On the edge of destitution, Lydia uses her wits to survive and resorts to stealing. She is saved from certain death by a young Chinese Communist, Chang An Lo, and together they are thrust into clashes with savage triads. Lydia and Chang fall in love and are swept up in a fight against prejudice and shame. Forced to face opium-running, betrayal and kidnap, their compelling attraction to each other is tested to the limits in this story of love and loss, secrets and lies.

A great historical read
The Russian Concubine is a pageturner and an entertaining read about what one would do to survive, but mostly the book is about is about love.

During the Russian revolution in 1917 a lot of the wealthty russians were arrested and killed. Valentina, who are married to a dane called Jens Friis, is a very beautiful woman and to save their daughter and herself she used her looks. But she cannot save her husband. Many years later, in 1928, the story is set in Junchow in China. Here we find people from all parts of the world, Great Britain, France, Italy and last but not least Russia.

Lydia and her mother Valentina are having a hard time making ends meet. Valentina drinks and Lydia are picking pockets in order to put food on the table. One day Lydia steals a very valuable piece of jewelry, and this changes her life and the lives of the people close to her.

I love historical fiction, but I have read very few novels based on russian and chinese history. This novel starts with a dramatic scene, which plunges the reader right into the story. From there on the book is hard to put down. There is a lot of things happening, and the story takes some unexpected turns.

Lydia is a typical herione. She is beautiful, strongwilled and stands up for herself. She is a bit of a tomboy, and she is prepared to fight for the people she love. She loves intensely and passionately, but her actions sometimes puts her in dangerous situations.

The book has a lot of surprises, especially at the end. On the negative side I did not like that we are offered the perspective of a lot of characters. I was mostly intererested in reading about Lydia, not the other characters. I also did not find that the title of the book corresponded well with the story.

But the Russian Concubine is a great historical read which will entertain you and also learn you a bit of history on the way.

Other reviews:
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Fire & Air
Book Reviews for Book Lovers

Kate Furnivalls website can be found here!

Review: Becoming Marie Antoinette, Juliet Grey

Publisher: Ballantine Books
Pages: 480
Genre: Historical fiction
Release: August 2011
Source: ARC from Netgalley
Nice to know: This is Grey's debut and the first book in a planned trilogy. The next book in the series Days of Splendor;Days of Sorrow is expected in 2012.

Raised alongside her numerous brothers and sisters by the formidable empress of Austria, ten-year-old Maria Antonia knew that her idyllic existence would one day be sacrificed to her mother's political ambitions. What she never anticipated was that the day in question would come so soon.Before she can journey from sunlit picnics with her sisters in Vienna to the glitter, glamour, and gossip of Versailles, Antonia must change everything about herself in order to be accepted as dauphine of France and the wife of the awkward teenage boy who will one day be Louis XVI. Yet nothing can prepare her for the ingenuity and influence it will take to become queen.

Captivating and entertaining

Becoming Marie Antoinette is a captivating and wellresearched novel about a girl who became one of the most talked about queens in the history of the world.

From a very early age Marie Antoinette was destined for great things. Her mother, the empress of Austria, sought only the best possibilities for her daughters, and once she decided to try to get the dauphine of France, Louis, to marry Marie Antoinette, Marie Antoinette's destiny was sealed. In the palace at Schönnbrunn she was given countless hours of training to one day, maybe, become the queen of France.

The novel starts in 1766, when Marie Antoinette was still a young and carefree girl who liked to fool around with her sisters and play tricks on her governess. We follow Marie Antoinette through the years until the moment when she and Louis are about to be put on the throne of France.

Juliet Grey has written a great historical novel, and managed to bring Marie Antoinette to life. Through extensive research and details she shows us how Marie Antoinette transforms from a young and innocent girl, and to the woman that married the dauphine of France. We learn a lot about the history of Austria and that of France.

This was a time when marriage was a strategical maneuvre, and when love was not a part of the picture. A time when a lot of people succumbed to diseases like smallpox and not all children lived to grow up.


Becoming Marie Antoinette should be read by anyone who likes a good and entertaining historical read, and also would like to know more about the woman that became the queen of France. I am eager to read the next installment in this trilogy.


Other reviews:
Medieval Bookworm
Passages to the Past
Historical Fiction.com


Juliet Grey can be found at Goodreads here.

Review: Eve, Anna Carey

Publisher: Harper Collins
Pages: 336
Genre: Dystopian, YA
Release: October 2011
Source: ARC from Book Ecpo America
Nice to know: Eve is Anna Carey's debutnovel, and the first book in a planned trilogy. There are currently plans about making the books into a TV - Series by the people who make the Vampire Diaries come to life on screen.

The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her.  Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

A disappointing dystopian

Eve was one of the YA - books I was mostly looking forward to this year. The premise for the novel sounded interesting, even though there are a lot of dystopian books being published these days. Sadly the book didn't live up to my expectations.

A virus have killed a lot of people, and the remaing population are trying to build a new society behind the walls of a new town founded in the desert. Boys and girls are kept separate, and attend separate boarding schools. Eve is 16 years old, and was taken away from her mother when her mother got infected with the virus. Eve has lived most of her life inside the walls of her school, and she is looking forward to her graduation and to utilize some of the talents she has been tought over the years. The girls have been taught that life outside the school's walls are dangerous, and that boys and men are not to be trusted. They will only take advantage of a girl.

a relationship between two people can be judged by the list of things unspoken between them.

The day before her graduation, Eve makes a discovery that makes her question everyting she has been told. She understands that a horrible fate awaits her, and escapes from the school and out into a world where she does not know who she can trust.

for days in the wild, only the birds spoke to me. The stream was the only hand that touched me, the wind the only breath tht blew the dust from my eyes. I learned the strange art of loneliness, the weathered yearning that swells and passes, swells and passes, when you walk a trail alone.

Eve comes off to a good start. The author sets the atmosphere, and I am instantly interested in finding out more about Eve and her world. The suspense continues until Eve meets Caleb, from that point I lost interest in the story. Considering the things Eve have been taught at school, I find it hard to believe that Caleb and his friends gain Eve's trust so fast. The pace of the story also changed, and made me think of Lord of the Flies.

I also had a hard time sympatizing with Eve, my sympathies was with another female character. She had all the qualities I look for in a YA - heroine. Eve was to weak in my opinion, and I did not understand her motivations, for example I was puzzled that she chose to flee from school and leave her best friend in the arms of a terrible, terrible fate. Eve also has a hard time surviving by herself, she needs help from other characters.

Happiness is a moment.

Later in the book, when Eve meets Marjorie Cross, I thought that the author was inspired by the Stand by Stephen King.

On the back of the ARC Eve is compared to the Hunger Games. That is not a good comparison. Eve does not come close to Katniss, and the book lacks a lot of the depth one can find in the Hunger Games.

Eve is a light read, that will entertain you in the moment. But it is not a book I wil remember for long, and that makes me sad because the story had so much potensial. Anne Carey is a good writer, she knows her way around words, but Eve was not my favorite dystopian read.


Other reviews:
I Swim for Oceans
Reading Teen
Chick Loves Lit

Anna Carey's website can be found here, and you can visit the author on Goodreads here.

Review: Fury, Elizabeth Miles

Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 352
Genre: YA, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal
Release: August 30th 2011
Source: Arc from Book Expo America
Nice to Know: Fury is Miles' debutnovel.  Miles is author Lauren Oliver's best friend. This book is the first in a planned trilogy.

It’s winter break in Ascension, Maine. The snow is falling and everything looks pristine and peaceful. But not all is as it seems... Between cozy traditions and parties with her friends, Emily loves the holidays. And this year’s even better--the guy she’s been into for months is finally noticing her. But Em knows if she starts things with him, there’s no turning back. Because his girlfriend is Em’s best friend. On the other side of town, Chase is having problems of his own. The stress of his home life is starting to take its toll, and his social life is unraveling. But that’s nothing compared to what’s really haunting him. Chase has done something cruel...something the perfect guy he pretends to be would never do. And it’s only a matter of time before he’s exposed. In Ascension, mistakes can be deadly. And three girls—three beautiful, mysterious girls—are here to choose who will pay. Em and Chase have been chosen.

Choices that haunts you

Fury is an original tale with a message that everything you do will have concequences.

Emily Winters lives in Maine, where she spends her days just like any other teen. Problems arise when she gets the hots for her bestfriend's boyfriend. And he seems to be liking her too. Another character in the story, Chase, is struggling to forget something he did to a girl. Something that may have caused her to hurt herself. But soon he forgets all about her when he meets three mysterious girls...

Fury starts off with a dramatic prologue. Then we are cast into Emily Winter's world. Miles is a great storyteller, and the pages in this story seems to turn themselves. Emily did not know what her love for Zach would lead to. She did not imagine that her whole life could be turned completely around just because of one single kiss. But that is excatly what happened. I truly felt for her throughout the book. I also liked the fact that we did not get the explanation behind the prologue until later in the book.

Another thing I liked is the fact that I didn't know what the paranormal element was. I did not know the role the three girls had,maybe because I am not that into Greek mythology

It is a few months since I read this book, so my review therefore is a little sparse. But I remember that I was glued to the pages, unable to put the book down.

The book has an important message. You cannot hurt other people, because there will be concequences. And sometimes love just isn't enough.  I highly recommend the book.


Other reviews:
The Book Smugglers
Wondrous Reads
Overflowing Library


Elizabeth Miles' webpage is here and she can also be found on Goodreads here.

Review: Misfit, Jon Skovron

Publisher: Amulet Books
Pages: 384
Genre: YA. Sci-fi & fantasy
Release: August 1st 2011
Source: ARC from Book Expo America
Good to know: This is Skovron's second novel. Jon Skovron is currently participating in a blog tour for the book.


Jael has always felt like a freak. She’s never kissed a boy, she never knew her mom, and her dad’s always been superstrict—but that’s probably because her mom was a demon, which makes Jael half demon and most definitely not a normal sophomore girl. On her sixteenth birthday, a mysterious present unlocks her family’s dangerous history and Jael’s untapped potential. What was merely an embarrassing secret before becomes a terrifying reality. Jael must learn to master her demon side in order to take on a vindictive Duke of Hell while also dealing with a twisted priest, best-friend drama, and a spacey blond skater boy who may have hidden depths. Author Jon Skovron takes on the dark side of human nature with his signature funny, heartfelt prose.


Original Demons

 Misfit is a highly original tale that will keep you entertained throughout the pages.

Jael lives with her father, and attends catholic school. The two of them have moved a lot, and Jael does not have a lot of friends. What Jael does not know is that she is a halfbreed, part demon and part human. Once she finds out, her whole life changes. She finds out that some scary forces from Hell are after her, and the few friends she does have are also in danger.

It took some pages before I was truly captivated by this story, but once that happened I could not put the book down. I have not read a lot of books about demons, so that setting was new and refreshing. Jael is a great character and stands out in the book. I believe that a lot of teenagers will identify with her and her many feelings. Jael feels that she does not fit in, she dreams of the first kiss and of having a boyfriend. One of the things she says to her friend Brittany, on the first page of the book, truly shows how she feels. It also gives the reader a hint that Jael is not your ordinary girl next door:

"You know that I heard? she says. "That what you see in the mirror isn't what you really look like. That since mirrors flip everything, you're looking at a flipped version of your face. Like, the exact opposite."

Speaking of friends, I didn't quite get the feeling for Brittany and Rob. The became a little vague for me. It also seems like the author has tried to build feelings between Rob and Jael, but this somehow drowns in all of the other things that are happening.

The best parts of the book is where we read about how Jael's mother and father met, and their adventures together. Those passages reads like an episode of Supernatural. I also liked how the author has described Hell, and the things that go on there. Dagon is a character that, if there is to be written more stories about Jael, I would love to read more about.

The author has also thrown in some excisting myths and legends, and put his own spin on them. One example is the story of Samson & Delilah.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that we will get a second book about Jael. I would love to read more about her.


Other reviews:
In the Good Books
Bookaliciou.us
Beyond Words

Jon Skovron's webpage
Jon Skovron on Goodreads

I did mention the story about Samson & Delilah, this tune played in my head whilst I read the scenes about Jael's mother and father:

Review: Long Lankin, Lindsey Barraclough

Publisher: Bodley Head Children's Books
Pages: 448
Release: April 2011
Source: E - book bought by me

















A chilling, beautiful debut novel inspired by a haunting folk song about murder, witchcraft and revenge. Beware of Long Lankin, that lives in the moss ...When Cora and her little sister Mimi are sent to stay with their elderly aunt in the isolated village of Bryers Guerdon, they receive a less than warm welcome, and are desperate to go back to London. But Auntie Ida's life was devastated the last time two young girls were at Guerdon Hall, and now her nieces' arrival has reawoken an evil that has lain waiting for years. A haunting voice in an empty room ...A strange, scarred man lurking in the graveyard ...A mysterious warning, scrawled on the walls of the abandoned church ...Along with Roger and Peter, two young village boys, Cora must uncover the horrifying truth that has held Bryers Guerdon in its dark grip for centuries - before it is too late for Mimi. Intensely atmospheric and truly compelling, this is a stunning debut.

Unused potensial

I like the idea of basing a novel upon a scary folk song, but this novel is unfortunatly not that scary.

The year is 1959. Cora and Mimi are sisters, and are spending the summer at their aunts place in an old village. They soon discover that they are not welcome here, and their aunts wants them to leave. Her house is not that friendly either. The stairs creak at night, there are chilling paintings on the walls, and the house appears to be haunted. Cora and Mimi get to know two local boys, Roger and Peter, and together they discover something scary on the cemetery. They discover that the village is home to something very special...

I first heard of Long Lankin when I was at the London Book Fair in April this year. The publishers said that it was one of their best titles this spring, and it was supposed to be very, very scary. That triggered my curiosity, and back at my hotelroom I bought the kindle version of the book.

The book starts with the old folk song Barraclough based her story on. A scary song, that is not sutable for the youngest kids:

So he pricked him, he pricked him all over with a pin,
And the nurse held the basin for the blood to flow in

Then th story continues with Cora and Mimi, who are on their way to their aunt. We are told, through Cora's eyes, that they are poor.

The perspective in the book changes between the main characters. Sometimes I liked this, because it made the story progress more rapidly. Other times I found it tiresome. But my main objection about this book is that I didn't find it scary. There is too much time passing before anything thrilling happens, the first 200 pages were a bit slow. I was constantly waiting for something to happen. And when the story really takes off, there is too much going on at once.

There is no question that Barraclough knows how to write a scary story, when we eventually gets to the scarier parts. Those pages would have scared me when I was a child. Maybe the book would have been better if it had been shorter.

I am going to read the next book from this author, but Long Lankin didn't quite do it for me.

Other reviews:
Cively Loves Books
Book Chick City
Writing from the tub

Lindsey Barraclough on Goodreads

The Booktrailer:

Review: Uglies, Scott Westerfeld

Publisher: Schibsted (Norwegian publisher)
Pages: 367
Release: First published in 2005, this edition in 2011
Source: Review copy
Good to know: Uglies was awarded the prize Best Books for Young Adults, when it came out. Fox has optioned the film rights






The tyranny of beauty

Uglies is a thrilling dystopian about what may happen when society gets to obsessed with beauty and good looks. Even though this is a made up story, it may serve as a critical loook at where out society today is headed, if we are not there already...

Tally is looking forward to turning 16 years, because that is when she will get cosmetic surgery and become pretty. Tally's best friend have already had the operation, and she is eager to meet him again in the city where all the beautiful people live. Whilst waiting for the operation, Tally spends her days doing pranks and going out on adventures. One day she meets Shay, and her life will never be the stame. Soon Tally is presented with a dark view on the world she lives in.

Uglies is a pageturner, written in an effective language. The chapters are short, and a lot of them ends with a cliffhanger. This makes the book a read I believe a lot of teens will enjoy. The story is not very obvious, and there is a lot of surprises. The characters are two - dimensional, and has depth.

Uglies is a coming of age story about finding your place in the world and in your own society. It is a book about growing up, and realising that your innocent view on the world has been just to innocent. The book talks about what happens when you leave your childhood behind, and see the world with different eyes. It is a book about friendship and loyalty, and the main character, Tally, is confronted with a lot of difficult choices.

Uglies was written because Westerfeld wanted to help teenageres love themselves. He also wanted to show what may happen if we just tag along and don't ask questions. The extreme reality that is Tally's world, is a harsh reminder of what may happen in a society that favors beauty before other qualities, and where no one can be different. Is that the place our world is going to in the future, or are we already there? The truth is that we live in a world where people can order babies from spermbanks, and where the intelligence and looks of the donor is important. A world where we are able to terminate a pregnancy if there is a prognosis that the baby will not be born healthy.

Our society loves beauty, and the more beautiful you are, the more sucessful your are likely to be. If your are skinny and beautful, you have succeeded in life. But if you are fat and ugly, you are look upon as lazy and as a loser.

Uglies makes us reflect on important questions, and that makes the book, not just a thrilling read, but also an important story well worth spending some time with.

To change the world, we need to start with our selves. Maybe this book can make you take one step in the right direction.

Other reviews:
Rhapsody in books
Teen Reads
25 Hour Books

Scott Westerfeld's website
Westerfeld on Goodreads

Review: Matched by Ally Condie

Publisher: Mangschou (Norwegian publisher)
Pages: 395
Format: Hardback

Released: April (Norwegian translation)
Source: Review copy

For Cassia, nothing is left to chance--not what she will eat, the job she will have, or the man she will marry. In Matched, the Society Officials have determined optimal outcomes for all aspects of daily life, thereby removing the "burden" of choice. When Cassia's best friend is identified as her ideal marriage Match it confirms her belief that Society knows best, until she plugs in her Match microchip and a different boy’s face flashes on the screen. This improbable mistake sets Cassia on a dangerous path to the unthinkable--rebelling against the predetermined life Society has in store for her. As author Ally Condie’s unique dystopian Society takes chilling measures to maintain the status quo, Matched reminds readers that freedom of choice is precious, and not without sacrifice

Life in a protected bubble

Matched is a great dystopian novel. I could not put this book away.

Imagine a society where all the big choices in life are decided for you by others. A society where officials decide who you are to marry, fall in love with and when you can have a baby. A society that decides what food you are allowed to eat, and also when you die. A place where no one must differ from the right norm, and where every wrong step may lead to terrible concequences. A place where something as private as your dreams is being monitored too. Welcome to Cassia's world.

There have been sometime since George Orwell wrote his famous novel 1984, but the heritage from that novel still lives on today. That is apparent in Condie's bestselling novel. Big Brother is watcing you and officials controls what you get to read and listen to. People are not able to write by hand anymore, everything is conducted on computers.

Cassia have never questioned this way of living, it is the only way of living she knows. She likes living in a world free of dangerous diseases, and is looking forward to the day when she will be matched with the boy she later will marry. Little does Cassia know that the day of the matching will change her life in ways that she never could have imagined. She gets to know Ky Markham more, and soon she starts asking questions about her life and the choices made for her by the officials.

Matched is a great novel, and I could not put it down. I became fascinated and was horrified by the world the author has created. I felt strongly for all the characters, especially Cassia and Ky.

The writing was good, and Condie is really great at conjuring metaphors and beautiful pictures. I also think she is talented when it comes to character-development. She describes Cassia's relationship to Ky and Xander in a very believeable way.

There is a lot of questions in this book that do not get answered. That didn't bother me, but actually served as an incentive to keep on reading. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series, and can't wait to see what Condie are up to next. A great debut.

Other reviews:

Wondrous Reads

There's A Book

The Infinite Shelf

Ally Condie's website

The website for the series

Matched on Goodreads

Book-trailer :

Review: Shiver, Maggie Stiefvater

Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 434
Format: Paperback
Released: October 2009





















Grace and Sam share a kinship so close they could be lovers or siblings. But they also share a problem. When the temperature slips towards freezing, Sam reverts to his wolf identity and must retreat into the woods to protect his pack. He worries that eventually his human side will fade away and he will left howling alone at the lonely moon. A stirring supernatural teen romance.

A beautiful paranormal romance

Maggie Stiefvater has written a haunting, chilling, but above all beautiful novel about love, loss and longing.

When Grace was a little girl, she was attacked by wolves. She survived the attack, and ever since that day she has felt a special bond to the wolf that saved her. When she discovers that her wolf is actually a werewolf, her fight to make him stay human begins.

I have read countless ravings about this book online, and I understand why. Shiver is captivating from the first page on.

The story has some similarities with Twilight: Girl meets boy, eh wolf. Girl discovers that boy is a supernatual creature. Girl and boy longs to be together, but it seems like that is not an option. Girl dreams about becoming a wolf in order to stay with boy/wolf forever.

But if the story is a like, the writing is not. I am no fond of Stephenie Meyer's writing, which I think is pretty poor. Stiefvater on the other hand really knows her way around words. She uses them to make beautiful pictures. Sometimes it feels like your are reading a poem.

I was a leaking womb bulging with the promise of conscious thoughts: the frozen woods far behind me, the girl on the tyre swing, the sound of fingers on metal strings. The future and the past, both the same, snow and then summer and then snow again.

The main focus of this story is the relationship between Sam and Grace, and we hear the character's thoughs as the chapters are divided between them. One chapter is from Sam's point of view, the other from Grace's. This ensures that all the feelings they both experience is well described, and the reader feels for them both.

I loved this story, and can't wait to continue with Linger. If you like great lovestories with a supernatural twist, this is the book for you.


Other reviews:
The Reading Zone
The Book Smugglers
Linus's Blanket

Website for Maggie Stiefvater
Maggie Stiefvater on Goodreads
Fanpage for the trilogy

Watch the book trailer:

Review: Between Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys

Publisher: Puffin
Pages: 352
Format: Paperback
Released: In the UK April 2011

















One night fifteen-year-old Lina, her mother and young brother are hauled from their home by Soviet guards, thrown into cattle cars and sent away. They are being deported to Siberia.An unimaginable and harrowing journey has begun. Lina doesn’t know if she’ll ever see her father or her friends again. But she refuses to give up hope. Lina hopes for her family.For her country.For her future. For love - first love, with the boy she barely knows but knows she does not want to lose. . ..Will hope keep Lina alive? Set in 1941, Between Shades of Gray is an extraordinary and haunting story based on first-hand family accounts and memories from survivors.

Heartwrenching and full of hope

Between Shades of Gray is a heartwrenching tale of a forgotten part of our world history.

Lina and her family leads an ordinary life in Kaunas, Lithuania. Lina's father teaches at the university, and Lina herself dreams of becoming an artist. She is talented and deeply inspired by the Norwegian painter Edvard Munch. Lina's whole world is torn apart one night in June 1941, when the NKVD ( an earlier name given to the KGB) storms their apartment and take her, her mother and her brother away. They do not know why they have been arrested, and not where the guards are taking them. Together with a lot of people, they are trown into cattle cars and taken to a labourcamp. Lina's days is soon filled with pain, longing and hard work, but admidst it all new friendsships are born and hope is always glowing.
I heard about this book during the London Book Fair, and decided to buy a copy. Once I started reading, I found it hard to put the book down.

They took me in my nightgown. Thinking back, the signs were there...
(Chapter 1, page 3)

Lina's story is so full of horrendous details, that I sometimes felt it hard to continue reading. The fact that the author based her story on eyewitness accounts, makes it even more heartwrenching. Lina is a strong character, and she never loose hope or the will to live. She struggles to keep her dignity and stay sane.

I felt as if I were riding a pendulum. Just as I would swing into the abyss of hopelessness, the pendulum would swing back with some small goodness.
Chapter 21, page 78)

Lina's mother is also a remarkable woman, a symbol of all the brave women who endured the same struggles as her during Hitler's and Stalin's reign. A lot of the things she said and did, made me cry.

I also liked Lina's brother Jonas, and the author have done a great job describing how he transforms from a young and carefree boy to a more mature boy weighed down by the things he has seen and experienced after he got hauled away from home.

Have you ever wondered what a human life is worth? That morning, my brother's was worht a pocket watch.
Chapter 7, page 27

There are many other interesting characters in this book too, Andrius being the most interesting of them all. Like Lina I was not always quite sure about what he meant and what he actually was up to. I also like the fact that the author has not portrayed the Soviets as animals. It is easy to demonize someone who does horrible things, but that is not what happens in this book. Lina do, of course, think of the Soviets as horrible people, but still we are lead to think of them as human beings.

As Lina's story progress, we get small glimpses into her past, revealling some of the things that may have lead to her family' being hauled away. Lina's memories is a stark contrast to what she experience during her hard journey away from home. And the reader is, like Lina, left in the dark about many things until the very end of the book.

We have heard countless tale about the persecution of the Jews during WWII, but I have not heard so much about the attrocities commited by the Soviets. This book opened my eyes to a somewhat forgotten chapter in the history of WWII. It was a heartbreaking read and the book will stay with me for a long time.

The title of this book is very well chosen, and the same is the cover. It describes Lina and her feelings in a very touching way.

Do not read this book on the bus or the subway, because you will cry.

Other reviews:
Wondrous Reads
Bibliophile Brouhaha
The Overflowing Library
Forever Young Adult

Official website for the book

Review: Divergent, Veronica Roth

Publisher: HarperCollins UK
Format: Paperback (Uncorrected proof)
Pages:496
Release: Released in the UK on May 3.
Review copy given to me by HarperCollins UK
















In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

An outstanding debutnovel

Divergent is one of the best dystopian novels I have ever read. It is an addictive read that you will not be able to put down. This is the new Hunger Games.

Beatrice Prior lives in a future Chicago, where the society is divided into factions that cultivates different virtues. There is the Abnegation, cultivating selflessness. The Dauntless is the faction for the daring and the brave. In Candor the emphazise is on honesty, and in Amity on peace and harmony. Every child must, by the age of sixteen, choose which faction they want to dedicate themselves to. The decision is helped by a test, that will show which faction you best belong to. But you still need to make your own decision, and for Tris this choice is going to be lifechanging.

Divergent have been getting a lot of buzz even though the book is not published yet. People are saying that this is the new Hunger Games, and the rights for both the series and the movie adaptions have been sold in major deals. There is only one thing to say: the book deserves every superlative that have been written about it. It truly is the new Hunger Games, and on some levels it is even better than the Hunger Games.

Beatrice, or Tris as she renames herself, is a fantastic heroine. She is strong, but not superhumanly strong. She is someone the reader wants to relate to, someone you can emphatize with. She has both good and bad qualities, and that makes her all the more interesting. Not one of the things she does is predictable. I really felt for her throughout the book. I cheered on her, and actually felt like she was a friend. Someone I wanted all the best for.

Tris' relationship to the different characters is described with insight, and the different developments in said relationships makes perfect sense. Nothing is given away to early.

Tris goes through lifealtering events, and the author managed to develop her accordingly to this througout the book.

The idea of the different factions is great, and the dystopian society described in this book is interesting to read about. Roth has done an amazing job creating this world. I see it vividly in my mind.

The book have a lot of suspense. It is thrilling, heartbreaking, entertaining, addictive, fantastic and great. Divergent has everything that you would want from a great book. I have trouble finding the words to describe how good it is.

The story have so many levels. Even though this is an entertaining read, you can find a critical look at the society we live in in the text. The book shows how power may corrupt, it talks about a society where individuality is not cheered on, but where everyone should fit into a specific form. If you are different, you are a threat. You are not to ask any questions. The book actually draws on the heritage from authors such as Franz Kafka.

The writing in the book is very good. Veronica Roth knows her way around words. And she avoids every cliche. Every time you think that hey, it will be a happy ending because that is just the way it is in books - she proves you wrong and the storyline takes surprising twists and turns.

Like I said, this is an amazing read. If you like the Hunger Games, you are going to love Divergent. This is the book you need to read this year. Get it now.

Veronica Roth is currently working on the sequel to Divergent. I cannot wait to read it, and find out more about this world. This is an amazing debutnovel.

Other reviews:
Parajunkee
The Lovely Reader
Confessions of a Book Addict
Bookalicio

Divergent on GoodReads
Veronica Roth's blog

Review: I am number four, Pittacus Lore

Publisher: Cappelen Damm (Norwegian publisher)
Pages: 441
Format: Hardback
Released: Released in Norwegian March 2011
Review copy, book read as part of a Norwegian bookblog tour



In the beginning they were a group of nine. Nine aliens who left their home planet of Lorien when it fell under attack by the evil Mogadorian. Nine aliens who scattered on Earth. Nine aliens who look like ordinary teenagers living ordinary lives, but who have extraordinary, paranormal skills. Nine aliens who might be sitting next to you now. The Nine had to separate and go into hiding. The Mogadorian caught Number One in Malaysia, Number Two in England, and Number Three in Kenya. All of them were killed. John Smith, of Paradise, Ohio, is Number Four. He knows that he is next.

A light read

I am Number Four is an easy and light read, that lacks some depth.

Nine aliens were sent to earth, when it became impossible for them to live at their own planet Lorien. To stay safe from attacks from the evil Mogadorian, they used a form of magic that only makes it possible to kill them in a specific kind of way. Every time one of them is killed, there appears a scar on the leg of the surviving ones. John Smith, aka Daniel Jones, is number four, and when he gets scar number three, he knows that his life is in danger.

I have not read many books about aliens before, so it was refreshing to read this book. I liked the mythology surronding Lorien, and the whole idea behind this book. But the book does not have much depth, We do not get under the skin of the characters, and sometimes the authors just rush through the scenes and does not take time to stop and dwell on the things that happen. This is particularly true in the prologue.

I am Number Four reads like a movietranscript. There is a lot of short sentences and the authors are more concerned about describing events rather than the character's feelings during the actual events. The actionscenes are written in a way that makes me believe that the authors have actually had a movie adaption in mind. There is a lot of details here, and I see it vividly in my mind.

I am Number Four is an entertaining read, the pages flew by and I think that the younger audience will like this book. There is a lot of suspense here, and much action. I also believe that having a male protagonist will help attract the boys to the book.

The book deals with a lof of themes; the most obvious one is the search for ones place in the world. The wish to belong to someone or something. That is something that may ressonate with the younger audience.

As you have noticed, I write "the authors" because this book is actually a collaboration between authors James Frey and Jobie Hughes. The duo is working on a new book. The Power of Six will be published in August this year.


Other reviews:
Katie's Book Blog
Becky's Barmy Book Blog
Book Nerd Blog

I am Number Four on Goodreads
The authors on Goodreads
Official website for the book