Today I’m posting my handwritten review of Pretties by Scott Westerfeld. You’ll see all the books of this four part series blogged about in the next week. You can see from the first review that I read this series back in 2010. That feels like it shouldn’t be that long ago but it was. I’ve always loved Science Fiction and I still feel like there just isn’t enough of it.
Have you read this book? What did you think?
JEH
It’s been a while since I posted and entry from my old book journal, which I kept long before I began blogging about books. Below, you can see my handwritten review of Uglies by Scott Westerfeld.
Have you read this book? What did you think?
JEH
Last Friday I spent all day absorbed in a book. it was so good that I just could not put it down. I mean, I did have to actually put it down now and again, but i picked it up immediately as soon as I was able. That book was The Girl on the Train. I loved it, but I’m not going to review it on here, because it is out of the norm for what I do review. What I am going to talk about is how to choose your next great read after having an epic-ly good time reading something else. Or rather, how I choose my next great read. Especially on a snow-bound weekend.
Every reader is familiar with that post-good-book lull. The, ‘that was fun but now what’ blues. I find they always leave me floundering. How do I choose my next book? I have an easier time choosing my next read after finishing something okay or so-so. I have a really easy time choosing my next read after reading something I didn’t particularly enjoy (because anything seems entertaining after that). But after reading a really great book…. SIGH… I flounder.
After finishing The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, I picked up about five different novels, read a paragraph or two, flipped through the pages and debated. What did I want to read now? I already had a stack of books next to my bed, the ‘read-next’ stack, which I order and rearrange on a regular basis. In the stack was, The Invasion of the Tearling, Steelheart, Seven Dead Pirates, Jane Eyre (which has been waiting half finished for over a year now), Fate of Flames, Splintered, and What Light. So I bounced, from book to book to book attempting to find something to hold my attention.
It might have been easier to just toss a coin. But it probably wouldn’t have been as fun. I read the first chapter of Fate of Flames, and enjoyed it, but it’s an e-book, and I decided I felt like reading a paper book. I read a few pages of The Invasion of the Tearling, but discovered I needed something faster paced following The Girl on the Train. I read a little bit more of What Light, which I’ve been slowly reading on my phone whenever I’m on the move, but couldn’t commit to it fully. I continued to ignore my beautiful copy of Jane Eyre because no matter what, I always just seem to feel too tired to pick it up. Then I picked up Steelheart and was like I FOUND IT.
So, how do you choose your next great read?
JEH
Young Adult Book Review: The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, then you know that I’m a fan of Sarah J. Maas and the Throne of Glass Series. After reading The Assassin’s Blade, I feel like I have a better background to those years Caleana spent in Rifthold. I love Rifthold, it is one of my favourite parts of the TOG world. To me, it is a magical Victorian kind of place with a seedy underbelly. I mean, who wouldn’t love that?
My favourite book in the series is still Crown of Midnight, The Assassin’s Blade didn’t change that for me. Nor was it a true stand in for the last book in the series, which is currently slated for a 2018 release. As I blogged the other week, the next book in the Throne of Glass Series is the Untitled Chaol book, which I’m excited for, and is due out in September. The Assassin’s Blade was released between Crown of Midnight and Queen of Shadows, but I didn’t read it until after I read Empire of Storms. If you aren’t that far in the series yet, I would recommend reading The Assassin’s Blade before Empire of Storms, because I think it would have added something to Empire for me. I also read the Maas is recommending that The Assassin’s Blade be read before the Chaol book too, so if you aren’t caught up in the TOG series, you have from now until September to do so. And I highly recommend it as a witty, fast paced fantasy series.
4/5 Stars
JEH
Young Adult Audiobook Review: Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor
Late last year I listened to the first book in this series on audiobook, and it was fantastic! The second book did not disappoint, but I will say that there were fewer surprises.
Laini Taylor’s world of Eretz, on the other side of the portals from Earth, is full of mystical creatures and angels, and lovely, fun, lively, and sometimes hilarious, characters. Zuzana is the primary comical relief character, and like in the first book, she is my favorite with her sparkling personality. Things grow darker in the second book, and things are more difficult for Karou as the narrative pushes forward.
My favorite thing about Laini Taylor’s books is her amazing way with language. She fills the page with surprising word pairings and description that brings the world to life. The audiobook, narrated by Khristine Hvam, is also brought to live through her wonderful reading and embellishment of character voices. I love how Hvam performs each character in a subtly different way, though, like in the first book, I don’t like the voice of Razgut, mostly because it creeps me out.
I can’t wait to listen to the third and last book of this trilogy, Dreams of Gods and Monsters, which I’ve already checked out from my local e-library. I highly recommend these ebooks, but be warned, each book clocks in at over fourteen hours of goodness, which for me means an awful lot of time at the gym.
5/5 Stars
JEH
Alright, I’m finally ready to tell you all the title of my new project. This is a Young Adult Science Fiction Mystery the I’ll be releasing in Late April or Early May of 2017. I has a few rounds of rewrites to go through yet, but I look forward to sharing tidbits with you each week as the launch gets closer.
So, here’s a mock cover I did when I drafted the book a number a years ago (yes, years). The actual cover is still being worked on by the amazing Leah Keeler. But don’t worry, I reveal it sometime before the launch.
So for now, the title: Under Jupiter
It’s going to be awesome.
JEH
There are a lot of series out there, especially in the young adult reading world. I’ve started reading a lot of series in the past couple years, a lot of which aren’t even finished being written yet (or maybe they are, and the publishers just haven’t released them yet!). Hurry up, publishers! Below is a list of the top 5 Young Adult Fantasy books I’m waiting for this year. Only one of these isn’t part of a series I’ve already begun reading, but is instead a new series by an author that I love.
1.The Savage Dawn (The Girl At Midnight #3), Melissa Grey, July 11th, 2017
I’ve loves this series since I first read The Girl at Midnight. Melissa Grey’s lively characters really bring this world alive for me. Especially Jasper, lovely funny Jasper. I also love the world building and the unique mythology in this trilogy. The Savage Dawn in the last book of the series. So if you’re the kind of person who likes to read a series all in one go, you’ll be able to do that come July 2017.
2. Throne of Glass 5.1 Chaol Novel, Sarah J. Maas, September 5th, 2017
If you’re a Throne of Glass fan, then you’ve probably already heard that book #6 has been bumped to a 2018 release date because Sarah J. Mass instead wrote a 100K novel regarding Chaol’s exploits, currently titled Throne of Glass 5.1. I’m acutally pretty pumped for this because Chaol is one of my favorite characters and he wasn’t in book 5 at all. Where did Chaol go? What is happening to Chaol? Maas has advised fans to read The Assasin’s Blade before TOG 5.1 is released, which I’m currently doing. I think I know how the novellas are going to fit into the Chaol novel. It’s going to be a good one!
3. Traitor to the Throne (Rebel of the Sands #2), Alwyn Hamilton, March 7th, 2017
I loved Rebel of the Sands when I read it in 2017. I loved the world and the characters and the mythical beasts. I can’t wait to discover what happens next in Alwyn Hamilton’s world, and it looks like I’ll be able to do this right away with the March 7th release date.
4.Strange the Dreamer, (Strange the Dreamer #1) Laini Taylor, March 28th, 2017
I still haven’t completed Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone series (I’m almost done audiobook #2), and I have to say, I love these audiobooks! Daughter of Smoke and Bone actually won Best Fantasy Audiobook in 2011, which does not surprise me. The Daughter of Smoke and Bone series is one of those that are classified as Young Adult, but I think that’s pretty iffy. Barely any of the characters are teens (I think most of them are like, 50-200 years old, and there is enough gore and violence to make me cringe). Anyway, Laini Taylor is such a great writer that I’m sure Strange the Dreamer will be just as fantastic as Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Also, a bonus fact, this book is scheduled to be released on my birthday! I think I might pick this one up in hardcover. Happy Birthday to me!
5. The Ship Beyond Time (The Girl From Everywhere #2), Heidi Heilig, February 28th, 2017
This entry is a bit different, as I haven’t even finished reading The Girl From Everywhere. You see, what happened is that I borrowed the book from my e-library and began reading it, but got really busy, and my loan expired before I got all that far into the book. This happens with a lot of books that I borrow to try. Most of the time I forget about those books, and never borrow them again. But I keep thinking about The Girl From Everywhere, and I keep wanting to know what happens. i need to know how this time traveling ship and these maps work. I need to know what happens to these characters! So I’ve waitlisted myself for this book again, and this time I’ll finish it. The sequel is out next week, so maybe I’ll even be able to read them back to back.
What books are you looking forward to this year?
JEH
YA Book Review: Girl In Piece by Kathleen Glasgow
For the past week I’ve been consuming Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow. As you can see from the picture below, I’ve had this book on my Kobo since the fall, and finally had the pleasure of reading it. When I began, I felt the heavy, serious weight of this book and its subject matter. It was, at times, especially in the beginning, incredibly depressing. But I don’t mind reading depressing books every so often. I might have inherited that from my mother, who reads depressing books all the time. I like to bug her about this, since most of the time I like uplifting and escapist books (hence my other recent read, Moonlight Over Paris).
I loved the character of Charlie, I loved the setting in Tuscon, because it felt fresh and different and sunny. Also, I’ve been to Tuscon, so to met it was familiar. The pacing was excellent. There were plenty of short little scenes, connected one to the other. There were no chapters, just these small breaks that kept me reading and reading and reading. I actually finished reading this book in the middle of the night because I couldn’t sleep, and then I couldn’t put it down. It was a nice contrast to the other books I’ve read this year. And a good break from all my fantasy reading. Obviously I like a variety, and this piece of realistic YA fiction was a great piece of life.
There were a few characters that did seem to just disappear though, who I thought should have made a few more appearances. But maybe they didn’t because this book was already pretty long (especially since it was realistic fiction and not epic fantasy, lol). There was a fairly large cast of characters, but I never felt overwhelmed. The true charm in this book were those relationships between the characters, who were fluid and true. So, if you like fluid and true books that are slightly depressing and have faint themes about life, then pick up this books. It’s good.
4/5 Stars
JEH
Finally! Today is the day that I’ve remembered I have a next big project announcement for you. I’m not going to reveal the title yet, that will come later. But I do have a very bad sketch of my concept cover art that I’ve sent to my fabulous cover artist. This is a book I wrote years ago, and that has been sitting for a very long time. But I love it, it’s a great story, and I feel like I’m a much stronger writer now, which means that by rewriting, I can make this a much stronger book.
This was NaNoWriMo project in 2010 or something like that, so it’s been needing some love for a while. It’s a Young Adult Science Fiction Romance type story, and I do hope you all love it. I’m aiming to release it sometime in April or May. I’ll firm up the date as it approaches. For now, here’s a tiny glimpse of what it’s about.
JEH
Okay, I’m hoping I’m right about the number, but in the long run, I’m thinking that the update # doesn’t matter.
This is the first week that I’m really struggling with my word count. I’m about 2,500 words behind my goal at this point. I should be almost at 160,000 words, but I’m not. I feel kind of down about this but I’m trying to be understanding at the same time. Day to day life has been very stressful as of late. In between taking care of people I love, my day job, and trying to find a few moments here and there to relax and do stress relieving things and get some sleep, I’ve been trying to squeeze in some writing. Obviously I’m not squeezing enough. Now I’m dreading the attempt to catch up and maybe even get a little bit ahead again. It’s important to me that I accomplish this goal, because there are so many stories that I want to tell. I have a ton of books planned and it feels heavy when I’m stuck carrying all these stories around. It’s the best feeling to get them out.
Yesterday, I read Sarah J. Mass’s newsletter, in which she discusses wring a 105,000K book in 5DAYS! I cannot begin to express how jealous I am. I wish I had the time to cloister myself away and get some stuff done. Lately, I’ve barely been feeling like I have five minutes, and even when I actually do, I’ve been mentally drained. The good news is that I have been getting SOME writing done. And also, I’m taking a mini-vacay this weekend: I’m going ice fishing! Maybe this will be just what I need to rejuvenate my writing mojo. I’m also finding that rewriting is easier than drafting at the moment, which is good news for my next project! Big announcement on that one tomorrow.
Other good news this week was that I went to my favorite local book store yesterday, and I saw this:
There was an entire end-shelf display dedicated to my books! I was so incredibly happy. This really makes me feel like the Black Depths series was a success. I can’t wait to launch my next big project.
What have you been up to?
JEH
J. E. H U N T E R 