The Warlock

Quick Summary: The Warlock is the fifth book in the series by Michael Scott and we find Sophie and Josh divided. According to the prophecy, one will save the world, and one will destroy it, but which one is which? Josh is with Dr. John Dee, a man who used to be his enemy, and Virginia Dare in San Francisco. Scathach, Palamedes, Shakespeare and Joan of Arc and her husband are trapped in the past on Danu Talis with death. Sophie is with the Alchemist and his wife, but Nicholas is very close to death, and Perry is right behind him. There is too little time left before the world, undoubtedly, ends.

My review: I, like all other books in this series, very much enjoyed it. It left me confused but I do like being confused and having everything straighten out in the end, it makes me think about it. It is so complex and I feel the need to research every character. I love this series!

My rating:

*****

This book is nominated for the Jack K Fiction Award for 2011!

Blood Red Road

Quick Synopsis: Blood Red Road is the story of Saba by Silverlake who has lived her entire life by a small lake with her father, sister, and twin brother, Lugh. Then the storm hits. Then a few men come by and take Lugh and Saba has to find her brother and travel through strange lands before it's too late.

My Review: I really enjoyed this book. There was a little bit of everything in it. Excitement, romance, anger, hatred, sadness...whatever you can think of, that's what this book has. At first I was a bit skeptical because the author writes with the accent pronunciations and also because there are no quotations, but I soon got over that fact and continued on with an unforgettable book.

My Rating:

*****

(This book is nominated for the Jack K Fiction Award for 2011)

Of Mice and Men

Quick summary: The classic novella by John Steinbeck, basically about mice and men, as the title indicates. It tells about Lennie and George, two friends who are trying to earn enough money to buy their own farm.

My review: I actually liked this book. It wasn't my favorite, but I really did enjoy reading it. It had a good pace and didn't contain long boring scenes. It was short and to the point and I liked the concept of it.

My rating:

***1/2

All Quiet On The Western Front

The greatest war story of all time as it is called, really did not live to its standard with me. Yes, I am not usually a fan of these types of books but really there were times that I found it painful to read. I had to force myself to turn the page. As I neared the end, I was dying to finish it, trying to stop myself from screaming out in agony. That's just my opinion. I admit I probably am a little biased against this but still, I would at least like it a little bit even with the bias thrown in. Oh well, you can't love every book.

Quick Synopsis: This book is about Paul Bäumer, who is a German soldier in World War 1. It is about his life in the war and the friends that he has made. It is filled with graphic description and a few gruesome scenes--though I did not find them as gruesome as they were said to be. It makes Paul, after seeing all of the violence and evil, think why there is war if it can be this horrible?

My Review: Okay, as I have already stated, I did not like this book. First of all, it is a story about history. Historical Fiction. I think it should be a rule that historical fiction should be written in past-tense, not present tense. It is not happening at this moment. At the end I found like the author was trying too hard to fit everything into the second-to-last chapter. Oh well, still I am so biased so I have to give a little bit more credit than I would.

My rating:

*1/2

I Am The Messenger

Brief Summary: In the next critically-acclaimed novel by Markus Zusak, Ed Kennedy, an average underage cabdriver in Australia stops a bank robbery. The next thing that he knows is that he is getting strange cards in the mail, each one leading to a different place, each one with an important message for him to give. As he starts to become more than just an average person, he wonders who is actually behind the strange cards.

My Review: I liked this book. It wasn't as good as The Book Thief, but it was still very good. I liked it. There were a parts that were a little too much, and a few parts that were a little cheesy and predictable, but, really, I found this book fun and interesting. It was sad and funny and strange at the same time. Well done.

My Rating:

****

The Marbury Lens

Synopsis: Jack Whitmore gets abducted one night, and narrowly escapes before travelling for two weeks in England, but while he's there the traumatic events that he experienced start to make him go crazy. Strange things begin happening and when he starts going to a strange world called Marbury after a stranger gives him glasses, he knows he can't stop.

Brief Summary: I have mixed feelings about this book. I thought at first that it would be scary, because that's what it says, this is a scary story. No. It's not that. I admit, there were a few disgusting and disturbing scenes that stayed with me, but nothing really that made me paranoid like over scary things sometimes do. I liked the story and the concept and I found myself drawn to the book many times, but there were times where I just had to think, I need to stop reading this for a little bit. Anyway, I felt a strange attachment to the characters and felt so sorry for them at times and, at times, worried them. Certainly an adult book, I really liked it.

My Rating:

****1/2

Trapped

Brief Summary: This book is about Scotty Weems who, during a large snow storm, gets trapped in his school with six other people. At first it seems like something that will last one night, but the snow does not stop after that, nor the next day. The snow just keeps falling and, with the power, the heat, and the pipes not working, any moment could be your death.

My Review: I really did enjoy this book. At first, I thought that I wasn't because of the "teenager point-of-view" with bad grammar and fragments (a very bothersome thing I come across when reading) but once I started reading, I found it interesting and I kept getting more and more drawn into the book. I think that it was a good read.

My Rating:

****

This book is a candidate for the Jack K Fiction Award