Kyle
Really, nothing new to add in terms of how much I love this book. Just read my review of [b:The Boy Book: A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them 516182 The Boy Book A Study of Habits and Behaviors, Plus Techniques for Taming Them (Ruby Oliver, #2) E. Lockhart http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320516454s/516182.jpg 504124] and then some. [a:E. Lockhart 173491 E. Lockhart http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1267209040p2/173491.jpg] is definitely climbing the ranks as one of my favorite YA authors.
Okay, let me get this straight before I move on to the actual review: this is NOT a bad book. This is a good book, but did not meet my own personal tastes, but wasn't actually overhyped to the max like books such as [b:Divergent 8306857 Divergent (Divergent, #1) Veronica Roth http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327873996s/8306857.jpg 13155899], [b:The Forest of Hands and Teeth 3432478 The Forest of Hands and Teeth (The Forest of Hands and Teeth, #1) Carrie Ryan http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320633297s/3432478.jpg 3473471], and [b:Under the Never Sky 11594257 Under the Never Sky (Under the Never Sky, #1) Veronica Rossi http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1338281538s/11594257.jpg 15093785], but there are certain aspects that really left me feeling very lackluster. Anaximander (or Anax) is beginning her four-hour examination to enter The Academy, the most prestigious academy in The Republic, a society built during an enviormental collapse many years before, followed by a total isolation during the most devastating plague the world had ever seen. Over the course of her examination, Anax will learn a startling truth about her society, and her strange connection to Adam Forde, the focus of her examination. Now, my initial problems with the book was the lack of connection I made to any of the characters. I did not connect to Art, Adam, Anax, any of the Examiners, and they're the entire cast of characters besides Pericles, but he doesn't even make an appearance until the end. I was willing to still give it 4 stars though, despite my initial misgivings because of how brilliant it was philisophically.It discusses many issues such as humanity, consciousness, essence, ideas, thoughts, and it was very interesting, complex, and not what I had expected. It was definitely wrongly labeled YA, and while I do see why it was put in the Sci-fi section of the library, I don't know why it's also YA Sci-fi. The world-building is absolutely spectacular. We're given reasons as to why the society came to existence, and they aren't far-fetched/inconceiveable. We get insight as to how soicety works, which include many things reminisinct of ancient Greek society, including names such as Plato (who started The Republic - get it? Plato's The Republic? The book he wrote on philosophy?), Aristotle, and Pericles. Even the Socratic method still exists, and because it's based on a civilization that already existed, it means that it could actually happen.So, solidly written, insightful, philisophical, well written, fantastic world-building. Sounds like a 4 star read to me, and if I had connected to the characters, a definite 5 stars. What went wrong then that made it fall to an average 3 stars?The ending. I LOATHED the ending. I predicted it about a 1/3 of the way into it, and I'd hoped it wouldn't go in that direction, because it combines two of my least favorite elements: a 1960's movie (which I will not name for the sake of spoilers), and an overdone scenario. So, predictable, and made of two of my least favorite science fiction elements. Also, why do people say the ending shocked them? I think it was very easy to pick up on, so maybe if you don't predict it, you like it more? Hmm, many things to ponder on.Honestly, here's what gave it away: what Art's head was, and what he is (a robot). From there, I combined the two, and went like, “This better not end up like that.” It did.I'd still reccomend it. It's not bad. It just suddenly ended up not being my thing.
FULL DISCLOSURE: My rating has nothing to do with the debacle between fellow Goodreads member Wendy Darling and the author. It is simply my own personal opinion after I completed the book. I read the whole 327 pages of it, and I did not like it.
THE REVIEW:
Drowning in debt, the United States is invaded by China. European countries begin allying with one another, and soon after the Chinese invasion, the Russians follow, but soon the entire North American continent allies itself together to prevent a complete Russian takeover of the continent (China also fights them to keep their territory). Some random guy whose name I don't remember but whose last name was Illea rallies everybody together, defeats the Russians, makes a peace treaty with the Chinese, and begins the country of Illea, ruled by a monarchy and trying to escape the memory of the collapsed America.
Illea's social structure is decided by a caste system, set up from One being the Royal Family to Eight, which are the people who don't get an education, and barely have anything. Your position in the caste system is decided by how much your ancestors helped the government. America Singer is a Five, and has a secret love with Aspen, who is a Six. Marrying down a caste level is not the most socially accepted idea, and when the Selection begins for Prince Maxon, the heir to the throne, America refuses to enter until Aspen convinces her to. She so happens to be one of the thirty-five selected girls, and enters a competition of tears, drama, scandal, an overdramatic amount of dress-ups, and meets the Prince!
This book was fuckin' horrible.
There's so many things wrong with the world-building, so let's start with that. There are mentions of some New Asia, and I at first thought that might be Illea. Nope, turns out it's just some random thing that pops up several times in the narrative. There's also mentions of World War III. Is that what the Chinese invasion was? Because, let me tell you. A war between China, America, and Russia is not a world war. That's a conflict between China, America, and Russia. Three countries, no matter how big and powerful they are, do not make a world ass war!
There's also some stupid rule about purity and staying a virgin until marriage. Apparently that's going to completely stop the spread of STDs. How about swapping needles and other forms of blood-to-blood contact?
This book is extremely sexist. So, the prince of Illea gets to have a Selection to decide who they want to marry, but the princess is given to some random person for diplomatic reasons between countries. Aspen says on page 50 that because he's a man, he has to be the provider, not America. Honestly, I'm not going to bother ranting anymore on this topic, so just check out YAL Book Brief's excellent review to find out more on the sexism of this book.
The characters are horrible. America is so beautiful, and so perfect, and everybody instantly likes her, and Prince Maxon likes her even after she yells at him, tries to knee him in the groin, and accuses him of having thoughts of forcing her to have sex with him, and everybody thinks she's going to win and become the princess, and the most annoying thing is probably how at the beginning of the book she has no aspiriations outside of marrying Aspen. Everything she does is about him, her whole world is about him, she can't stop thinking about him.
Maxon was way too perfect to be real. I get your the prince, but that doesn't mean you automatically need to be the perfect gentleman and be super-duper understanding.
The rebel “attacks” were so stupid I don't even know why they were put into the book. Too much cowering in corners screaming and crying and in some cases passing out from panic do not make for anything being dramatic. Nobody is even ever killed, just injured, and their rooms get ransacked. Boo-hoo.
The writing style is very juvenile and has nothing very interesting or gripping about it. I'm not going to say it as juvenile as C. C. Hunter's in Born at Midnight where a sixteen year old girl thinks saying “crappies” is cool, but it's not as mature as it should be.
The plot. Where was it? There were so many scenes of walking around the garden talking to Maxon, or getting dressed up in fancy dresses - oh my God, can you FREAKIN' STOP GETTING DRESSED UP?! YOU'RE NOT GOING ON A DATE TO BED, YOU CAN DRESS NORMALLY!!!!!!!! - tears, sabotage, off-screen eliminations is not a plot.
You know what's funny about this book though? It actually had the potential to be amazing, but only if a different writer had handled it though. I know that if E. Lockhart had gotten her hands on this book, it would've been 5 star amazing, and you know why? This is the perfect social commentary/satire. A commentary on reality television (specifically the Bachelor{ette}) and how sexist it can be at times, on how desperate some people can be for fame, and it would've been bloody brilliant.
Yet this is what went wrong.
What a pleasant surprise!
Secret Vampire: 4 stars
On the first day of summer vacation, Poppy is diagnosed with terminal cancer in her pancreas, and will die by the end of the summer at the latest. James, her best friend who also happens to be a vampire (unbeknownst to Poppy of course), and may even be in love with her, decides to take drastic action to save her life, by turning her into a vampire to make her immortal.
I really did like the story, plot, characters, writing. It all just worked for me.
Daughters of Darkness: 4 stars
Three vampire sisters, Rowan, Kestrel, and Jade are running from the Night World, and are planning on hiding with their Aunt Opal, another vampire. When they arrive at their house, however, they find her stabbed to death with a stake through her heart, and Mary-Lynette, a girl who lives next door, is terrified when she sees the three sisters burying something in a hole in the ground, and takes it upon herself and with her brother Marc to investigate.
Probably my favorite of the bind-up, I liked everything about it, and was a very quick, light, enjoyable paranormal read, and I really, really liked Mary's character and her choice regarding the romance and vampirism in the end.
Spellbinder: 4 stars
Two witch cousins, Blaise and Thea (the MC), have been expelled from four schools since their sophmore year, and are now living with their grandmother, whom they usually only stay with during the summer. On their first day of school, Thea catches the attention of Eric Ross, a kind but popular guy, who is also wanted by Blaise, who gets pleasure from driving boys crazy (literally in some cases) by making them falling in love with her and smashing their hearts to pieces.
Definitely my least favorite of the bind-up. I think the ending was kind of cheap, and I don't think Blaise's character really added up, and I don't feel like it was because she developed in any way. I was happy that the back cover was exaggerating the focus of the love triangle (which it really wasn't), and I'm not sure how much I liked Eric's character so much (kind of 2-D), but I liked the switch of focus to witches instead of vampires.
——–
Overall, this is a well written collection of paranormal romance stories, which are surprisingly well written, well plotted, original, interesting, with decent characters and plots, and some interesting romances in the case of DOD. I'll definitely be picking up the other two bind-ups (and I believe there's one single book out to, the 10th if I'm correct).
A freakin' trainwreck. Don't even get me started on how cheap that ending was. Got a preview of The Struggle, and I hate how it just cuts right off. If you're going to write a book like that, and then make a bind-up, sell the freakin' bind-up as an e-book.
All the characters were idiotic, obnoxious, and just plain unlikeable.
I have no clue what the plot of this book was.
The romance was insta-love, over-the-top, and completely unrealistic.
Complete and utter garbage compared to the beginning of the first Night World bind-up.
As a whole, I can genuinely say this series far surpasses the Darkest Powers Trilogy in terms of quality, even this installment, which I do have mixed feelings towards. There will be spoilers for [b:The Gathering 7896345 The Gathering (Darkness Rising, #1) Kelley Armstrong http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1277820938s/7896345.jpg 11137563], so read onward at your own risk if you haven't read the first book in the Darkness Rising Trilogy. Maya, Rafe, Daniel, Hayley, Corey, Nicole, Mayor Tillson, and the pilot of their evacuation helicopter crash land in the Canadian wilderness after the forest fire that was heading directly for their home town of Salmon Creek, owned by the St. Cloud Corporation. Three people are killed by the time this occurs, and it is immediately followed by the people who attacked Maya, Daniel, and Rafe in the forest during the fire chasing them and their friends. Kelley Armstrong is an author who I have a complete love-hate relationship with. I've given her books 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, and 4 stars and the average of that is 3 stars exactly. Her books can really . . . suck, and while I'm still a fan of THIS trilogy, I am looking at The Rising with fear of dissapointment.I still really like the characters. I do like Daniel a little better, but I'm not getting a good feel for him still, so I am happy a love triangle hasn't occured yet (but I'm positive it will). I still enjoy the setting, and I like Armstrong's easy to read writing style, and the books are very readable. I love how the paranormal creatures in this book are stuff I've never come across before, and while skin-walkers are pretty similar to werewolves in my opinion, everything else is still very unique.Also, I really like reading about Maya and Rafe, and I like their relationship, and their dynamics and everything, and it proves that Armstrong knows what she's doing when tackling with teen love. It's not the end of the world if it doesn't work out, there's more to life than them making out, they're not making out when they should be running from evil, etc.However, what makes this installment dissapointing is how not much genuinely happens. We get progress, but I STILL don't know what's the bigger picture is. Get back to Salmon Creek? Okay, that's cool and everything, but what next? I didn't figure out the point in The Reckoning, the final book in the Darkest Powers trilogy, and since they apparently connect, and Chloe and Co. are coming back in the last book, I still am not sure what the big conflict is in the course of this six book series (?).We learn a little bit more about Project Phoenix, but not much more than what Rafe told Maya in The Gathering about them ressurecting once extinct paranormal genes and whatnot. So, maybe that comment about progress isn't enough. Also, this book reminded me of The Awakening, which was the second book in the DP series, and not a book I care to remember. Isn't nearly as bad as Awakening, but there's a lot of running, a lot of hiding, and not a true point to this all.Am I the only one thinking there's more to this? Are they suppose to take down these corporations, because the way how DP ended, they practically said they weren't even close to doing that, and I don't think teaming up with Maya is going to drasitcally change the playing field.
Thank God the zombie romance part wasn't as literal as I thought it would be. However, nothing was particularly gripping about it, and while it does bring up some interesting questions about what makes a person a person and the difference between life and death, it wasn't enough to win me over. Never really connected to the characters, but I did like Julie, the female love interest. Also, the ending is really corny in my opinion, and way too conveinent. Deus ex machina anyone? It sure seemed that way.
Actual rating: 4.5 stars The best mystery I've ever read? Maybe. Set in the late 1970's, [b:The Westing Game 902 The Westing Game Ellen Raskin http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312497590s/902.jpg 869832] tells the story of the eccentric millionaire, Samuel W. Westing, and his final game. He's invited sixteen special people to live at Sunset Towers, but on Halloween, Sam is found dead in his bed, supposedly because of a heart attack. However, at the reading of his will, it turns out these sixteen people are the heirs of Westing, and the will is one giant game designed to see who can figure out the truth behind Sam's death. The only thing they know for certain is that Sam didn't die of a heart attack.He was murdered. And that it doesn't matter what you do have. It's what you don't have that counts. Oh, yeah, there's also a bomber, a thief, and a mistake.I loved this book. It has everything I want in a mystery. Red herrings, a twisty, on-the-edge-of-your seat plot, interesting backstories, clever clues, and an incredibly unpredictable outcome. Seriously, if you figure this out before they tell you, you're a genius, or I'm just really slow.Every character is interesting, complex, 3-D, has something unique about them, and are one of the best things about this book. We also get some different ethnicities, who are also NOT given racial stereotypes. We have three Asian characters, who are not all super-smart techy people who have no athletic abilities whatsoever. In fact, one of them is a track superstar. We have an African-American court judge. That alone gives the book a lot of things going for it. My favorite characters were definitely: Turtle, Angela, Sandy, Flora, Chris, J.J. Ford, Sun Lin Hoo. I don't think I need to talk any more about the plot and mystery. I loved ‘em.That ending was perfect, and I loved how we get to see where everyone is years and years after (even further than we got to see in Harry Potter).Ah. So much love for this book! If only more than just a few more books were written by Ellen, because after this I'm going to of course read more from her.
[b:Before I Fall 6482837 Before I Fall Lauren Oliver http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1289341713s/6482837.jpg 6674135] tells the story of popular high school senior Samantha Kingston, on Cupid's Day at her school. Sam is mean to everyone along with her three friends Elody, Ally, and the top dog, Lindsay. They bitch, shop, gossip, laugh, bitch, bully, bitch, bitch, but it's all good. After all, they rule the school, and Sam's finally going to sleep with her uber-hot, perfect boyfriend ROB. It also happens to be the day she dies. No biggie, because the next morning, Sam wakes up in her bed, and it's all good. Probably just a dream. Until she relives it six more times. Now, I'm one of those people who reads popular books two years after there released. I'm one of those people who can tolerate bitchy mean cynical characters. Sometimes (okay, all of the time) I find them ten times more interesting than the nice characters. Are all, that means they must have some kind of depth to them, correct? Well, I'm not sure the same can be said for some of the mean girls in this book. Lindsay? There were definitely moments when I saw something a little deeper to her, but I feel like she never changed, as well as Elody and Ally. Also, how is it that only Sam can notice that the exact same thing is happening over and over again? That's one of those things that never makes sense to me in these kinds of books/movies. Really? Somebody doesn't remember getting beer dumped over their head repeatedly and pushed around, yet some mean bitch remembers her boyfriend being too drunk to sleep with her? For the most part, I did believe in Sam's development as a character. I did find her to be 3 dimensional, and like a lot of people in this book, I find I could identify her with another mean popular bitch at my school whose name also happens to be Samantha. I do find the end of the book to be a very brave thing for her, although I do take issue with some of it. I liked her romance with Kent, but I feel like it sort of jumps out of nowhere, since it's technically all over the course of one day, right? One moment she's suddenly falling in love with him? The next she's interested in him, and then the last day she's totally hooked. So, two days and a few hours to fall in love? Eh, it was cute, but not all that believeable.I probably sound like I really disliked this book. I didn't, actually. I just had a love-hate relationship. I wanted to give it two stars, five stars, three stars, 4.5 stars, and everything else in between. Here are the parts that won me over.The writing is absolutely beautiful. Lauren Oliver knows how to make magic out of words, and it shows that she had extraordinary control of her prose even from the beginning. Her prose is definitely some of the finest I've ever come acrosss in the YA genre, and at times can even rival that of [a:Laini Taylor 324620 Laini Taylor http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1224474224p2/324620.jpg] (well, maybe not that high, but it's pretty damn fantastic IMHO.) Like I've mentioned before, I can pinpoint just about every character on people I know or I've met before in my life. Even if they aren't exactly like this person, they're personalities can belong to multiple people, and I found myself connecting to Juliet Sykes, Kent McFuller, and even Sam at times, and then found girls I could pinpoint on Kent, and guys on Sam as well. SPOILER ALERT FOR REST OF REVIEWThe ending definitely had me tearing up, but there seems to be this flaw in it. It's too easy, and it's not very satisfying, and it seems to not make sense for me. So, Sam dying in a car accident is one thing, but throwing herself in front of a car and comitting suicide doesn't cause her to wake up again? Didn't stop Juliet Sykes from showing up again. Still, it had me tearing up, so while it did feel like an easy cheating way to end the book, and at times felt flawed, it moved me anyway.So, in short, [a:Lauren Oliver 2936493 Lauren Oliver http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1291156327p2/2936493.jpg]'s beautifully written 2010 debut novel is definitely one that lingers with me, and will be one I may re-read years from now.
My thoughts on this are basically the exact same thing as the previous novel, [b:I Heart You, You Haunt Me 1832749 I Heart You, You Haunt Me Lisa Schroeder http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327869714s/1832749.jpg 1832664]. The only new thing I have to say is that I did appreciate Lisa's attempt at making the verse into a little more creative format (this only happened like three or four times, but still), and the characters felt a little more real than in IHYYHM, but only a little.Still, nothing about it is special.
Seriously, don't waste your time on this verse imposter of a novel. Putting regular ass sentences in stanza format isn't verse. And if you're still going to do that, at least put it in a creative format.
Otherwise, flat characters, the writing itself isn't very good (I always expect beautiful writing from verse novels - what can I say, Ellen Hopkins has set the bar very high), the “romance” is creepy and stupid, it's boring and unmemorable, and deserves nothing more than 2 stars.
And that's that.
This book is made of sci-fi awesome! It's not a literary masterpiece by any means, but if you're looking for something quick and fun and easy to read just to pass a rainy day, don't pass this up. I compare this to [b:Blood Red Road 9917938 Blood Red Road (Dust Lands, #1) Moira Young http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1293651959s/9917938.jpg 14692536], since the level of entertainment is so high, I inhaled both of those books. I read this 373 paged book in about 2 1/2 hours (the time I actually spent reading once you deduct sleeping, and class), which is insane. Does that mean I'll have some memory issues with the book when I read the sequel? Probably, but I just couldn't put this one down. Benson Fisher has been a foster child for twelve years, ever since his mother abandoned him with a babysitter, and his father has never been in the picture. Hoping for a chance at freedom, Benson applies for a scholarship to the Maxfield Academy in New Mexico. Upon being accepted, he hopes to begin a new life for himself, make real friends, play sports, have fun - until he learns that there are no adults at the school, there are security cameras, detention equals death, they're not allowed to leave, and the school is divided into three gangs: Society (the goody two shoes), Havoc (the kids that you don't want to meet in a dark alley), and Variant (also known as the V's; don't belong to any other gang, so they watch each other's backs). Now, can I just comment and say that I loved that there the school was divided into gangs? I seriously just can't get over how much I loved that aspect of the book. Whenever a gang war was being threatened, I had my fingers crossed whispering, “Please, please, let them get pissed off and start fighting!” I have no clue what came over me, but that's what happened.I loved the premise, the writing was good, it was very readable and held my attention the whole way through and not once was I ever bored, there was plenty of action, mystery, suspence, originality (when I read the inside flap, I groaned at the mention of a boarding school), but there is one (pretty big) flaw with the book.I liked the characters; none of them annoyed me, I sympathized with the good guys, loved to hate the bad guys, and felt bad for them when the time called for it. However, I didn't connect with any of these people on a deeper level. They felt 2D, so close to being people that I could truly be concerned for them and their well being besides the superficial, “Oh, I hope they make it since their in a bad situation!” However, they weren't boring or flat, and like I mentioned before, I did really like them, but I felt this lack of an emotional connection.That ending! Insane! That cliffhanger is huge, and I have no idea where the series is going, and cannot wait until October so I can read the sequel. Even if there are more questions than answers, I have full faith that Robison Wells won't dissapoint.
4.5
This review will be spoiler-free for people, even if you haven't read the first (fantastic) book in this (fantasic) trilogy, Skin Hunger.
Skin Hunger was a dark fantasy novel, and was not in any way a fun read. After the rather anticlimatic ending of the first book (don't let the word “anticlimatic” deter you, it's still fantastic!), we're thrown into a whole new ball park. We still follow or main characters Sadima Killip and Hahp, whose stories are set centuries apart.
For a book that clocks in at 554 pages, I was never bored, and while at times, for very brief periods, it could be slow, it never felt so slow I wanted to put the book down. The pages flew by, and I was enthralled in this world, these characters, this story, everything about it.
I do have some issues however. I do like the writing, and while it's good, I noticed that, especially when reading about Sadima, the sentences are very choppy. Normally that doesn't bother me too much, but in this book it did. Also, around 300 pages into the book, something happens to Sadima, and it completely changes her story, and even more so, her character. I didn't enjoy her as much in the second half, simply because she was so foreign to the Sadima I'd come to grow and love since the first installment. I mean, she still possessed traits that the old Sadima had, but some of her outlooks on stuff that she'd once believe in change, and something about her just felt off (and I know, something was off, but it really bugged me).
Yes, the way how time would fly by also annoyed me. One paragraph skipped five years into the future for Sadima! I know, her story covers over a large expanse of time, yet that doesn't mean I'm under any obligation to like it.
Yet I still love everything else about this book. While it's not the greatest climax to a book, the ending is stronger than the first one. The writing is also solid, when I wasn't getting annoyed by the choppy sentences (which weren't too frequent). The characters are unique, dark, and have depth and layers to them. The world, especially in this book thanks to the extra 200 pages added and the second half of Sadima's story, is more fully realized, and we learn more of the various cultures that inhabit her world during this time. It's atmospheric.
After that ending, I cannot wait to dive into the third and final installment, whenever that book comes out. So far, the only info I've heard is that a third book will come out. No title, cover, synoposis, releaste date, or estimated year of release, nothing. Just the publisher, and Untitled (A Ressurection of Magic, #3).
This is not a book for every reader. This reader needs to
1) Be able to appreciate a book, even if it's so slow you want to throw it across a room
2) Be able to read the words that aren't on the page
I'd read enough warnings that the book is very slow, and isn't actually science fiction, and that definitely prepared me on some levels. However, despite the 5-star rating, this book is extremely problematic. For one thing, it IS incredibly slow. It even got put in my “Boring” shelf, even though I loved it.
The plot is virtually nonexistent. There is no climax, resolution, rising action. If I HAD to identify a point at the book where something of a climax does occur, it's just EXTREMELY anticlimatic. There is zero action the entire way. It mainly focuses on three characters: Kathy (our MC), Ruth, and Tommy, and their friendship, romance, and just Kathy's life as she goes from childhood to the point she is at now in her life.
However, this is where the book becomes complicated, and you need to be able to get past the problems that the book has. It's beautifully tragic, and what makes it even sadder is that the characters themselves don't find it tragic, but just a nessecary part of life. It truly touches the reader at their soul, and it makes them feel sad for these people not feeling sad, makes you cry when they should be the ones crying alongside you.
The premise is a very simple one. Kathy H. is thrity one years old, and has been a carer for several years now, and will soon begin her final stage of life has a donor. After WWII, people were cloned, and these clones have been raised at Hailsham, and various other programs, alongside other clones. Their whole lives are dedicated to being organ donors, nothing more, nothing less.
In terms of characters, Kathy is hauntingly beautiful and unforgettable. Tommy was a character that I was able to connect with on very frightening levels. Ruth, I couldn't stand her at first, loved her by the end.
This book is extremely subtle. It's not for everyone, and it has to be read by a very patient reader. The writing is solid, the book is tragic, it makes you think, makes you feel, and it makes you question what it really means to be alive, to be human, to live.
Powerful.
Had it focused more on whether or not [a:William Shakespeare 947 William Shakespeare http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1179017891p2/947.jpg] or Edward de Vere was the one who actually wrote Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing (which inspired the name of the MC), Macbeth, and all the other classics, I would've enjoyed it more.Other than the (small amount) authorship debate of de Vere and Shakespeare, I only enjoyed how the book had a writing style that flowed decent, and had me flipping pages very fast, considering up until today I had about 30 minutes a day.