Review: 'Lovely, Dark, and Deep' by Amy McNamara

Lovely, Dark, and Deep

Amy McNamara

Goodreads / Amazon

A resonant debut novel about retreating from the world after losing everything—and the connections that force you to rejoin it.&nbsp> Since the night of the crash, Wren Wells has been running away. Though she lived through the accident that killed her boyfriend Patrick, the girl she used to be didn’t survive. Instead of heading off to college as planned, Wren retreats to her father’s studio in the far-north woods of Maine. Somewhere she can be alone. Then she meets Cal Owen. Dealing with his own troubles, Cal’s hiding out too. When the chemistry between them threatens to pull Wren from her hard-won isolation, Wren has to choose: risk opening her broken heart to the world again, or join the ghosts who haunt her.

The Big Picture:

Only reason I started to read this book because is about a girl named Wren. I'm always interested in books about Wrens. I always like comparing myself to her/him and figuring out what we have in common.
I was surprised by this haunting book. It was quite good. I felt a connection to Wren. I felt like she was me in a way.
I liked her transformation. It was slow and steady. It changed in subtle ways.
The romance wasn't something I liked necessarily. I felt like it was uncalled for and rushed. Not that Cal wasn't interesting or anything.
And the plot was a bit dull. It was slow for sure. And nothing really happened.
This book stunned me. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did.
But the one thing I got from this book was this: there is always hope.

The Dirty Details: 

As I went through this book, I felt a connection to her. To Wren. I am her. And she is me. In a way. We are both creators. She takes photographs. I write. We make things. We make beautiful things seem haunting. We make haunting things seem beautiful. We make the world look different. (Or so I hope.)
I knew that I would grieve like she did. I felt like I would cut myself off from the world if I had a loved one die. I would stop speaking. I would mope and listen to music and read. I felt like our reactions would be the same.
It wasn't just ours names. Sure, that probably helped my feeling of connection. It wasn't just that people called us Wren even if that wasn't our legal birth name. It was her emotions. Her reactions. I saw myself in her shoes. (Not that I'd get a boyfriend at all. I mean...I'm still me. She's still her.) There was just something about her. Her vulnerability. Her quiet. I wanted to hold her close and protect her. I felt like her overprotective older sister.
Not that I didn't like the connection. I did. I thought it was great work on the author's part. It's hard to make me feel so strongly about a character.

Her transformation was slow and steady. She started off distant. Mute. She slowly came out of her shell. First with Cal. Then with Mary. Then with Zara. She came out. She gained life. I loved that. The transformation showed that grief isn't a terrible monster sitting on your back. You can push grief off and become someone new. Wren wasn't Mamie anymore. She was Wren. She was reborn. Like a phoenix. (My favorite mystical creature.)
In the end...there was hope. Hope for love. Hope for the future. I want to know where the world takes her.

The plot was a bit dull. It followed a slow story with Wren trying to make sense of the world. There wasn't much going on. She took such a passive path through life. I felt like she wasn't really living at times. I wanted her to recover quicker, but grief affects us differently. I can't say I wouldn't mope. I've never been through her sort of grief. (Or any grief for that matter.)
I wanted more drama. I wanted a fight. Maybe a parents vs Wren fight about college? Or a fight about her life choices? Her parents seemed drained, though. They didn't want to push her too hard. That's what happens with an only child. You can't push too hard. They don't have a supportive sibling to help them out. It's just you and them. (And I know how it feels to be an only child. I am one.)

I didn't like the romance. I felt like it was rushed. How long did they know each other? A few months? A few weeks? I'm not sure. These two barely met before they kissed. They barely talked. What made Cal like her? What did she like about Cal? Was it because they were both sick and tired and miserable? Or was it something else? This was never explained.
These two didn't have chemistry. Sure, Cal made Wren happy, but it never seemed to last. Her mood was a roller coaster, going up and down at random points in time. Nothing was set in stone with her.
I know that Wren and Cal helped each other, though. He made her happy in short bursts. She made him forget. They helped each other in their time of trouble. Maybe that's all that matters.

The ending shocked me. I have to admit that. I was confused. 'That's the end?' I thought. 'How can that be the end?' It was such a drop. I felt like there wasn't a floor anymore. I was stranded and lost. The story just ended.
I realized, though, after I put down my phone that the author left it open for many reasons. You're left with questions. (Many questions.) But you feel the hope, and you know Wren will get better and so will Cal. You feel it in your gut.

Rating:

4/5

#FF Feature & Follow

Feature and Follow is hosted by Parajunkee of Parajunkee's View and Alison of Alison Can Read.

If you could have 3 wishes granted, what would they be?
– Life is Reading

Oh man...this is a tough question.
I wish for happiness for the saddest and the people down on their luck. 
I wish for books for the people who don't have access to books. 
I wish for the power of flight, so I can see the world! (Not that planes aren't fun and all. -gags-)

Ask the Blogger: Melanie from YA Midnight Reads

Ask the Blogger

This time on Ask the Blogger...

I'll be interviewing Melanie from YA Midnight Reads.

Who is Melanie?

Goodreads / Twitter / Instagram

Melanie is a 15 year old student from Melbourne, Australia. She's known as that crazy melodramatic fangirl to her friends and loves spending her time procrastinating, fangirling over Percabeth, wasting her life away on Twitter and reading (duh). Addictions include gummy bears, ice-cream, coffee and binge-watching TV shows. The 100, HTGAWM and Sherlock are her true loves.

Note: I do not own any of the photos. All rights go the owners.

Why did you choose the name YA Midnight Reads?

I originally named the blog The YA Book Lover when I first started blogging. I KNOW. I give you permission to cringe, go ahead. I honestly have no idea what was going on in my brain when I first named it that. It was a on the whim decision, really. I ended up changing the blog to YA Midnight Reads just a few weeks later after that and to be honest, I can't remember why I chose it! I guess I used to read till really late (or really early in the morning, however you see it) and I thought it was summed up my reading life pretty well. YA books + late nights.

Why did you guys decide to co-blog together?

I have to co-bloggers, Celine and Larissa, but I blogged by myself to begin with. I started YA Midnight Reads back in Year 7, and it was really easy to keep it running by myself (I posted pretty much every day without fail) because the school I went to was really light on the homework and it was close to home so I didn't spend much time travelling home. But then in Year 9, I changed schools and the commute is 2.5 to 3 hours all up each day, and I get piles and PILES of homework, hence less time for blogging and reading. And because I didn't want my blog to be suddenly inactive, I thought about recruiting 2 co- bloggers, so I made a blog post about it asking for applications if anyone was interested. Larissa turned out to be one of the people who applied. As for Celine, she and I already knew each other as she had her own blog, but we were both talking about how hard it is to juggle school and blogging, so we decided to join forces!

What's your favorite series? 

HARRY POTTER. PERCY JACKSON. CHAOS WALKING TRILOGY. *flails* *dies*

Which book world do you want to live in?

Most definitely want to live in the Harry Potter world! I was obviously destined to go to Hogwarts *hair flip*

Who is your OTP? 

Anyone who knows me knows this one. My ultimate OTP of all OTPs is Percabeth (Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase from the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan). They were my first ship ever and have always remained my favourite even though it's been more than 2 years now. They possess my two favourite romance tropes: the hate to love as well as SLOW BURN. HELL YEAHZ. 

Which book guy makes you swoon the most? 

Okay, this question is like, VERY HARD. There are many. Here's just a few:

• Rafa from The Rephaim by Paula Weston
• Miles from Made You Up by Francesca Zappia
• Gilbert from Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
• Percy from Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
• Cricket from Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

What do you do in your downtime?

Read (duhhhh), raid the pantry, binge TV shows, catch up on much needed sleep, heh.

If you had to eat one food for the rest of your life, what food would it be? 

I get sick of the same food after a while no matter how much I love it so this is really hard. I think pizza? At least there are different toppings... right??

What superpower do you want? 

This isn't really a superpower, but I would love to be invisible whenever I want. I MEAN, THINK OF ALL THE THINGS YOU COULD DO. It'd also come really handy in awkward situations. I could just - VOOM - vanish into thin air and avoid all the awkward cringe-y-ness.

Where would you create base camp if you lived in a zombie apocalypse? 

ON THE MIDNIGHTIAN BOOK FORT OF YA MIDNIGHT READS. (Yes, this is a thing. Only special people can see it though, so...)

Thank you, Melanie!

Review: 'The Cage' by Megan Shepherd

The Cage

Megan Shepherd  

Goodreads / Amazon

The Maze Runner meets Scott Westerfeld in this gripping new series about teens held captive in a human zoo by an otherworldly race. From Megan Shepherd, the acclaimed author of The Madman's Daughtertrilogy.

When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.

Four other teenagers have also been taken: a beautiful model, a tattooed smuggler, a secretive genius, and an army brat who seems to know too much about Cora's past. None of them have a clue as to what happened, and all of them have secrets. As the unlikely group struggles for leadership, they slowly start to trust each other. But when their mysterious jailer—a handsome young guard called Cassian—appears, they realize that their captivity is more terrifying than they could ever imagine: Their captors aren't from Earth. And they have taken the five teenagers for an otherworldly zoo—where the exhibits are humans.

As a forbidden attraction develops between Cora and Cassian, she realizes that her best chance of escape might be in the arms of her own jailer—though that would mean leaving the others behind. Can Cora manage to save herself and her companions? And if so . . . what world lies beyond the walls of their cage?

The Big Picture: 

This was a thought provoking book. I was left scratching my head, trying to figure this out.
I thought that the characters were interesting. They had complex backstories. They had relations already set out like with Lucky and Cora. I loved the backstories. The multiple PoVs was also well-done. It wasn't too confusing or complex. It was completely understandable.
The romance wasn't something I liked. It seemed uncalled for and completely unexpected. Especially that love triangle. There was no reason for it.
I thought it was great that the book brought up some meaningful arguments. With the changing world right now, some of these arguments are valid in real life. What does it mean to be human? How can you lose your humanity? What makes us human?
The ending left me wanting more. It was full of tension with a sorta-cliffhanger ending.

The Dirty Details: 

The different PoVs provided different ways to see the world they lived in. I thought the way the different PoVs was used was well-done. (Not all multiple PoV books are good. Sometimes, they get confusing. It can be hard to keep track of all the characters and their motivations.) We got to see Cora's perspective. She saw the world through defiant eyes. She was determined to escape. It painted a darker picture. Nok was trying to see this world as home. She saw the world as her salvation. Rolf saw the world as a scientist at first. He picked apart the illusions and figured out the puzzles until he was seduced by Nok. He turned into a hateful, blissful person. (If you can believe that.)
It also provided tension. When a character, say Cora, was about to do something stupid or reckless (which defines all of the things Cora does), and then the story changes to Nok, you wonder what happened to Cora. You have to read what happened to Nok before you get back to Cora. It's a great way to create tension. There was one instance (and I don't remember the details) where a PoV switch made me rage because I wanted to know what happened to Cora and not Nok.

I loved the backstories. They were extremely diverse. Cora was in prison. Nok was a model in a place that was like a whorehouse. Rolf was bullied for his genius. Lucky was tortured by guilt. Leon was a smuggler. They all had interesting pasts. We got their motivations for things. Why Nok manipulated people. Why Cora was insistent to leave.
Their lives before were starkly different than their lives in the cage. These teens had terrible lives. They suffered. They lived in misery. Things were starkly different. They had food. Love. Toys. Mental stimulus. Physical stimulus. For once in their lives, they could be happy.
I felt for these characters. Their loneliness. Their pain. I wanted to help them. I wanted to be their friend. I wanted to be with them.

This book brought up human nature and what it means to be human.
What does it mean to be human? Is it the culture? The language? Our lack of telepathy? Is it our skin? Our bodies? What keeps us from being animals? (Though, we are technically animals.)
It was a thought provoking argument. I kept mulling over it once I was done. What make me human? Can I lose my humanity? And the thing is...I don't have an answer for that.

The romance was uncalled for. It seemed to exist for the purpose of existing. I know the Third Rule. (Don't tell me about it. I know.) I didn't like the romance. Everyone paired off. Everyone had feelings for their partner. Can't you rebel? I know you were matched, but that doesn't mean you need to submit to it. What if you don't even like your match? I didn't understand.

The plot didn't have much going on. It was mostly Cora looking for a way out and flirting with Mr. Hot Alien Guy. It was the others submitting to Rule Three and submitting to the world. I'm all for rebellions and fighting back. That's why I respected Cora. She wanted to leave. She wanted to go home.
I wanted more action. More fighting. I wanted to see Cora fighting for real. I wanted to see Leon battling it out. Their hormones were raging. Why didn't anything happen?

The ending was full of tension. We were given an escape scene. Freedom. A luxury some people forget they have. I thought it was well-done. I was kept on the edge of my seat, hoping and praying they didn't end up dead.

And I loved the reveal about Cora's powers. It was shocking. It wasn't expected. Cassian thought the humans might have her powers, but I wasn't convinced. Then, she used it. And whoa! I didn't know humans could do that. It was a very cool reveal and a good plot twist.
The ending left me wanting more. I want the next book now!

Rating:

4/5

Review: 'The Stars Never Rise' by Rachel Vincent

The Stars Never Rise

Rachel Vincent

Goodreads / Amazon

Sixteen-year-old Nina Kane should be worrying about her immortal soul, but she's too busy trying to actually survive. Her town's population has been decimated by soul-consuming demons, and souls are in short supply. Watching over her younger sister, Mellie, and scraping together food and money are all that matters. The two of them are a family. They gave up on their deadbeat mom a long time ago.

When Nina discovers that Mellie is keeping a secret that threatens their very existence, she'll do anything to protect her. Because in New Temperance, sins are prosecuted as crimes by the brutal Church and its army of black-robed exorcists. And Mellie's sin has put her in serious trouble.

To keep them both alive, Nina will need to trust Finn, a fugitive with deep green eyes who has already saved her life once and who might just be an exorcist. But what kind of exorcist wears a hoodie?

Wanted by the Church and hunted by dark forces, Nina knows she can't survive on her own. She needs Finn and his group of rogue friends just as much as they need her.

The Big Picture: 

Overall, I felt a little disappointed in this book. I was expecting something else entirely.
Nina was terribly boring. She would be an ordinary poor person in this world if she didn't have her powers. On top of that, I didn't like her flat personality. Her loyalty to Melanie was admirable, though.
The plot was just okay. The action scenes were pretty amazing. And that breakout? Awesome.
I did not like the romance. I didn't. At all. It was too quick and uncalled for. The two characters barely had chemistry. It (the romance) seemed for form for no reason.
The ending was a cliffhanger. I hated how it ended so abruptly, but I can't wait for book two.

Travel Companion:

If we traveled with the main character Nina Kane, she would be:

The Thief

She would steal things. She would steal to feed her sister and mother. She would steal for money. She would be good at it, but she would get caught sometimes.
We would meet her during one of her takings. We would stop her and ask her to return the stuff. She would refuse and tell us her story. (Quickly, of course. She wouldn't want to get caught because of a little chat.) We would take her with us and let her stay with us for a bit. We would hang out and get used to her personality. We would invite her to join us, and she would join us on our adventures to escape her reality.

I didn't particularly like Nina. I thought she was too boring. She didn't have much going for her. Okay, you're an exorcist. I get it. Do you have any other qualities?
She was pretty ordinary. Sure, her thievery was pretty interesting, but she wasn't anyone special. Nothing about her wowed me. I felt like there could have been more.
Her personality wasn't stunning either. Her personality mostly consisted of her being stunned into silence or accusing people. She didn't make snarky remarks like Finn or Devi. She wasn't uber-kind like Reese or Grayson. She was kinda in the middle. Nothing about her stood out. 

The Adventure Begins (And Ends):

The plot was okay. It wasn't anything too interesting. I wasn't wowed by it. It seemed to move slowly but not too slowly. The majority of the book was them thinking and moaning and laughing and doing stupid things. I felt like they really weren't on the run. It wasn't even like they were hiding at times.
I liked the action. That was pretty great. The exorcists really knew what they were doing. And they did it well. And they had fun doing it. I would love to fight with them.

There was one problem, though. It felt like Nina knew how to fight even without training. And I don't believe that. You have to train. Your exorcist senses can't always help you. I hope they train her in book two. I felt like she got lucky most of the time when she fought the degenerates.

I'll Wait For You At the Gate:

The romance was quick, and I didn't really like it. There was no reason for it.
The two didn't have chemistry. They just didn't click. Why did Finn like Nina? I don't know. Nina was boring and dull. Finn was exciting, though. He was pretty interesting. I'd rather read about things from Finn's perspective. These two just didn't mix well.
I felt like the romance was there to just be there. A little 'aw' factor. I didn't like that. Everyone seemed to pair off as well. Reese and Grayson. Maddock and Devi. Who else? Who's next? Step right up and be paired up! You'll definitely find love and NEVER break up!

Perks and Upgrades:

I loved the world. I really did. It had many layers to it. And we got some background information from the mini quiz Nina gave Melanie. We learned about the demons and what happened. It wasn't a detailed world, but it was definitely interesting. Souls and demons. And degenerates. Exorcists. Etc etc etc.
And I thought Finn's predicament was unique to this book. It was a great idea. I thought it was really cool. The thing I had a problem with was that he seemed like Superman because of it. Doesn't he get tired? Or have someone who isn't willing? I felt like he needed some restrictions. You can't just body jump whenever and wherever you want to.

I loved the family and friends elements added in. Books that emphasize family and friends get a +1 just for that.

Nina was a pretty good older sister to Melanie. She cared for her and would do anything for her. Which I liked. And Melanie would do anything for Nina. These two are an admirable pair.
The friendships were pretty great. The exorcists really worked well together. They were in sync. I can't say my friends and I communicate through steely glares and invisible, telepathic conversations, though. These guys were a team. They were family to each other. I thought that was nice.

You Have Arrived at Your Destination:

That cliffhanger... The ending had lots of tension. I felt like the plot just dropped. And I didn't know what to do. I said, out loud, "That's the acknowledgements?" I was wondering where the story had gone. It disappeared. I wanted more.
The cliffhanger assures me one thing, though. There will be a sequel. And, because of the cliffhanger, I'll be reading the sequel to find out what happens next. (Mostly because of Finn.)

Rating:

3/5

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Fairytale Retellings I've Read/Want To Read

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This Week's Topic:

Ten Fairytale Retellings I've Read/Want to Read

I don't particularly adore fairytales anymore. I don't believe in the prince charging in to save the day. I can save my own person, thank you very much. I do read their retellings, though. Some are really amazing. They can be dark or humorous. The authors work their magic and change things to make the fairytale their own. 

All the books on this Top Ten are ones I've finished. 

Cinderella: Cinder, Throne of Glass, Shadows on the Moon, Ash
Red Riding Hood: Scarlet
Beauty and the Beast: Cruel Beauty, Of Beast and Beauty, Stung
Rapunzel: Cress
Alice in Wonderland: The Looking Glass Wars