Category: Reviews by Maddie

Review: Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

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Ella EnchantedElla Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Genre: Fairytale Retelling
Published by: Collins
Pages: 230
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★★
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

Cinderella is my favourite fairy tale. Ella Enchanted is one of my favourite movies. Fairytale Retellings is my favourite genre of book. Therefore, the only conclusion I could come to was: I must read Ella Enchanted, the novel and It. Was. Beautiful.

Published in 1997 (the year of my birth!!) Ella Enchanted was difficult to track down. Unlike GCL’s other books, there wasn’t a Kindle edition. Any new version of the book was kind of expensive. So, I did the next best thing: used and new, and let me tell you, that is a hidden source of excellence.

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Review: Running Girl by Simon Mason

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Running Girunning-girlrl by Simon Mason
Genre: Crime, Mystery
Published by: David Fickling Books
Pages: 443
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★.5
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

‘Running Girl’ is a mystery, the first in a series. Garvie Smith is the boy genius, who is the 21st Century male counterpart to Nancy Drew, and has the knowledge and expertise to solve it.
I watch, and occasionally read, a lot of detective crime dramas, so I was the perfect target audience for a book like this. It was jam packed with clues and plot twists that had me second guessing until the final reveal. However, my education of crime drama plots helped me make a wild guess to the murderer in the first fifty pages, which turned out to be correct in the end. If Inspector Morse has taught me anything, it’s: always expect the unexpected, and everything is relevant.
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Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

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dosabDaughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Published by: Hodder & Stoughton
Pages: 418
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★★
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

‘Daughter of Smoke and Bone’ is the perfect example of a ‘Bee Book’. She read it first and really enjoyed it, even though there were no faeries involved. So, I was tentative to try it out – our taste in books doesn’t differ that much, but this has been sat on Bee’s shelf for so long, I kind of forgot I could read it.
Bee never knew how to describe it to me, and now I totally understand why. A lot happens in DOSAB, that it’s hard to categorise it by genre. It literally fits no conventions, and I think that’s what’s made it so successful!

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Review: Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider

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extraordinary meansExtraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Medical (?)
Published by: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 336
Format: ARC E-Book
Rating: ★★★★★
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

I’ll start this review by saying that ‘Extraordinary Means’ has become one of my new favourite books, and is the best book of 2015, I’ve read so far. Good. I think that pretty much sums up the review!

Robyn Schneider classifies this book as a ‘young adult medical narrative’ in her author’s note. I guess this makes it similar to other books of the genre, such as ‘The Fault in Our Stars’. But, whereas John Green’s novel has slightly glittery edges (made shiny by tears), ‘Extraordinary Means’ is grittier. It was humorous without being pretentious. It was realistic without glorifying disease. And, yes, there were a few extended metaphors, but it wouldn’t be a YA book without them.
So why did I like it so much? Well….
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Review: From A Distant Star by Karen McQuestion

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from a distant starFrom A Distant Star by Karen McQuestion
Genre: Alien, Contemporary, Adventure
Published by: Amazon
Pages: ??
Format: ARC E-Book
Rating: ★★★.5
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

After seeing that this book is part of the contemporary-alien genre, I was excited. I love reading genres I’m not very familiar with; it means I can enjoy the book on a different level, without having a lot to compare it to!
‘From A Distant Star’ was definitely a great book, and I would recommend it to anyone who loves the genre, or is interested in a slightly strange road trip story.  Continue reading “Review: From A Distant Star by Karen McQuestion” →

Review: All I Know Now by Carrie Hope Fletcher

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all i know nowAll I Know Now by Carrie Hope Fletcher
Genre: Advice, Non-Fiction
Published By: Little, Brown
Pages: 322
Format: Hardback
Rating: ★★★
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

This is my first non-fiction book, so I’m a little unsure of how to review it! It’s Carrie’s life after all! But, I did have a few thoughts while reading the book, so while this might not be the most conventional review, I thought, seeing as a lot of people will probably get this book, that it might be nice to hear some opinions from a slightly critical fan.

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Review: Only Ever Yours by Louise O’Neill

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only ever yoursOnly Ever Yours by Louise O’Neill
Genre: Feminist, Dystopian
Published by: Quercus
Pages: 400
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

‘Only Ever Yours’ was my first book of this genre, for the YA market. I think the only similar style think I’ve read is ‘Volpone’ by Ben Jonson, and that was for my English Lit course. I say the books are similar because they’re both satires, critiquing society in a way that isn’t overtly saying this is wrong. ‘Only Ever Yours’ was obviously written from a feminist perspective (I don’t know how this book could have been written any other way) and dealt with issues of materialism, body image, the objectification of women and female homosexuality. Overall, the five different ‘sections’ of the book all seemed very different, and I found it difficult to believe the ending was the same book as the beginning.
‘Only Every Yours’ is different from any other ‘dystopian’ style book because Frieda, the main character, doesn’t actually manage to break the society she lives in. She’s 100% subject to it, and can do nothing to change that, and in a way, that’s what gave this book a scarier feel than ‘The Hunger Games’.

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Readalong Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

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throne of glassI read ‘Throne of Glass’ as part of my first read-along with a friend of Goodreads! I thought as well as posting my formal review of ‘Throne of Glass‘, you may be interested to read my immediate thoughts on different parts of the book! But be warned, there are going to be spoilers, so only read this post if you’ve already read the book. So, ready for the bullet point style of notes?

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Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

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throne of glassThrone of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Fantasy
Published by: Bloomsbury
Pages: 412
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★★
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

Bee and I got the opportunity to read ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses‘ a few months back, which meant we read Maas’s books in kind of the wrong order. Everyone loves the Throne of Glass series. Everyone loves Maas’s writing style and the fantasy setting. Well, when ACTR fell a little short of the mark, we didn’t know what to expect when it came to reading her debut. Thankfully, it was AMAZING. Here’s what we thought…
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Review: Emma Hearts LA by Keris Stainton

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emma laEmma Hearts LA by Keris Stainton
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Published by: Orchard Books
Pages: 254
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★.5
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

The sort-of sequel to ‘Jessie Hearts NYC’ better met its genre expectations of being an epic romance that took place in a foreign country. But this time, there was a love triangle! Classic!

Plot
You might remember Emma as Jessie’s best friend. It turns out that Jessie’s family isn’t the only one lucky enough to get a job in the USA. Emma flies out with her family to live in on the west coast, coincidently living close to a boy from her past and a hot movie star. The boys make up part of her love triangle, and Emma has to choose whether she wants fame or a fantastic relationship. Tough choice.  Continue reading “Review: Emma Hearts LA by Keris Stainton” →