The Riverman Review

Title: The Riverman
Author: Aaron Starmer
Pages: 307
Version: Paperback
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

I received this book as an advance reader's edition quite a while ago and I got around to reading it recently. From the beginning, I knew I would like this book just based on the cover. The cover is absolutely amazing, it has a fantastic art style and draws you in. So then you open the book. Alistair Cleary is a normal boy for the most part. He goes to school and does anything an average boy would do. Until Fiona Loomis comes along and tells him a crazy story that isn't all that it seems to be. She wants Alistair to document her story because he's a kid that can keep a secret. However, when strange things start happening all around Alistair, he needs to unravel this mysterious story of Fiona's life. I absolutely loved this whole story, it was like a fairy tale going on in parallel to the real world with the lines being blurred and things crossing over at times and just... there's so much going on. I do think that the story did drag a bit at parts though because a lot of time felt like it passed slowly with not much going on. However, somehow it sorta worked with this book, at least it did keep my interest the whole time. I really liked the way it was written, the style overall was enjoyable to read. The one thing that bothered me the most was definitely that the ending was a cliffhanger and the next book isn't out yet. That's always really frustrating, but it was especially annoying in this book. It felt to me like the whole book was building up to this big reveal where everything would make at least a little more sense and the reader would be like "Oh, of course!" That didn't really happen in my opinion though. The plot built up and built up and built up and then it was essentially like it suddenly cut off and said "What will happen? Find out in the next episode" Which bothered me. Otherwise, it was fantastic. If you like fairy tales, definitely give this one a go, but maybe wait until the next book comes out?

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy Review

Title: Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy
Author: Karen Foxlee
Pages: 227
Version: Paperback
Publisher: Random House, Inc.

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy. So I received this book quite a while ago as an advance reader's copy. I got around to reading it a week or so ago and I'm so glad that I did. This book was really what I wanted to read at this time. It was so fantastic and really felt like an adventure. As I have been ill for over a month now, I haven't been able to get out as much as I would like to. This book though, it took me to another world. It was a really nice change of pace to get to experience this book because I tend not to read books like this too often. I think it can be enjoyed by a variety of ages as well which is great. The little illustrations separating the parts of the book actually added a lot to the overall feel of the book. I absolutely love the cover which is actually one of the reasons I decided to read this book. It does a very good job showing off what the story is like. Now to plot, essentially there is a boy called the Marvelous Boy who was chosen to go off on a journey to defeat the Snow Queen. Along the way, he is captured by the Snow Queen and needs help to defeat her which is where Ophelia Jane Worthington-Whittard comes in. She, her sister, and her dad arrive in a city where it never stops snowing in which there is a museum that her dad has taken a job at. While wandering the museum, she discovers the Marvelous Boy and their journey begins. I won't say much more than that so as not to ruin the story, I highly recommend going and reading it yourself. If you enjoy fairy tale sorts of books then I'm sure you will like this book. The only thing that I didn't like was the end of the book because it was a rather big cliffhanger and I am unsure as to whether the story will get a sequel or not. Either way, I think it's worth a read as it's not too long and it really is an adventure.

Landline Review

Title: Landline
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Pages: 308
Version: Paperback
Publisher: St. Martin's Press

I read this book a while ago, but I haven't had time to write this review because of being busy as well as sick. However, here it is! I received an advanced reading copy in a sweepstakes from St. Martin's Press (thank you!). I actually haven't read any of Rainbow Rowell's other books even though I have been told they are fantastic. I have heard that this book is significantly different from her others in that this one is more geared towards adults and is more mature. I can see how that would be as this book is definitely very real rather than idealistic. That being said, there is a bit of fantasy and referenced in this book which I really enjoyed. The book is about Georgie McCool, a comedy screenwriter, and her working out certain problems with her marriage as well as her life. I won't say much more than that, I would recommend picking up the book and giving it a shot if you're interested. This book is a love story in a somewhat backwards sort of way. It almost seems like it's meant to show love how it truly is. There are always problems at least once in a while, it's never perfect like it is made out to be in so many books, movies, etc. This made the book very relatable, mostly to adults, but also to older teens. Georgie and Neal are really sort of ordinary people aside from Georgie's somewhat unique job which also helped to get the reader to connect with the characters. It is rare to find a book that shows the difficulties in love in the way that this book does and for that I think it's something that is definitely worth a read. Personally, I just really enjoyed this book not only because of the realism and the characters, but also because I feel like I have gained some valuable knowledge for the future. I highly recommend this book if you're interested with a realistic "love story" with a whole bunch of twists. The book will be out on July 8, 2014.

Gray Zone Review

Title: Gray Zone
Author: Veronica R. Tabares
Pages: 284
Version: Paperback
Publisher: Sun Break Publishing

I've not had too much time to read lately, but I finally just finished Gray Zone last night. I got this book off of a goodreads giveaway (Thanks!) and to be honest, I really didn't know what to expect when I started it. The first thing I noticed was the cover which is actually pretty nice except that the placement of the title and author's name drove me mad. In addition, the "one" in Zone is a bit hard to read over the light background as well. I don't particularly understand the shape of the girl on the front, but I like it anyway so that's all fine. The book also feel really nice. The cover has some sort of strange texture that I really like. Anyway, onto the book. So at first, I was a bit iffy on it. I wasn't sure if I was going to like it in the beginning because it's not the type of book that I normally read. Autumn was written a little weirdly because she's supposed to be a sophomore in high school, but she doesn't actually sound like one a lot of the time. I tried to just overlook all of that though because it's not the most important thing. The plot would seem to be somewhat boring, but the message that it puts out is extremely powerful. It deals with all the sorts of emotions that go into bullying and how it effects people. In addition, it also talks mostly about cyber-bullying and the new ways that bullying can be spread online. Personally, I've been lucky enough to not really experience bullying first hand. That being said, I could feel the emotions of the characters and saw what they went through. This book brings the emotions of bullying through incredibly well. After reading it, I feel like I understand bullying and how much of a problem it is a lot more. There was one story arc in it with a character of a bully that I felt maybe should have been continued more to show why bullying happens, but the end was sort of left on a cliff hanger and I can see how that could be carried over into the next book rather successfully. If the author is planning on writing another book, I think I would definitely check it out. Overall, I would recommend this book to someone who wants an emotional book that reveals some of the consequences of bullying.

Wool Review

Title: Wool
Author: Hugh Howey
Pages: 509
Version: Paperback
Publisher: Simon & Schuster

So I've just finished Wool. I honestly don't really even know what to say about it at this point. Wool is without a doubt, one of the most incredible books I have ever read. I went into it not really knowing what to expect because I didn't know too much about it, but I really don't think I was expecting it to be as good as it was. I will just say now that it has quickly become one of my favorite books of all time and I absolutely can't wait to read Shift. Wool was originally written as five stories and then was put together into an omnibus version with all five as one. I read the omnibus version. All of the stories except for the first one center around Juliette, a talented worker in mechanical. The book takes place in a silo that is set into the ground after the planet became poisoned with a sort of gas that kills anyone that is exposed to it. There are over a hundred levels going down into the ground and each floor has a different sort of specialty. Mechanical is deep down and controls the power and most of the functions of the silo. I could go on explaining this book forever so I'd say just go read it and find out for yourself. Hugh Howey starts the book off by first making you really confused and then slowly explaining everything in ways you don't really expect which I loved. It was interesting trying to come up with explanations for things and then finding out shortly after. The plot was just fantastic and the world that Howey created is amazing. It has so much depth and the people that you meet along the way are all so different and add a lot to the story. I do really like the cover of the book even though it doesn't tell anything about the story. It's nice to look at and somehow seems to capture the feel of the book in a strange way. The book is quite long, but definitely worth it if you have the time to read it. The writing style is great and well suited for the book. Howey is very descriptive and the book is extremely visual. Wool can be compared to Fallout (the video game) with the vaults being similar to the silo and the world being somewhat similar. I'd recommend this book to anyone that like science fiction books in a post apocalyptic world. I really just can't recommend it enough, it's an amazing book.