So sorry for not being active the past couple months...I didn't have enough time to post (or read, or sleep, or eat regularly...) so please excuse my absence. On Wednesday I did manage to go to the library in search of a book for school and ended up borrowing only five nice big books for my own pleasure...and had a nice chat with a stranger, but that's another story for another day. I also received one in the mail from the wonderful Ivy Adams :) So far I've finished that book and three out of the five from the library in three days! I had to stop myself from going through the rest of the pile before my next trip which would probably be later today. Because there's too many books to write thorough reviews like I did before, I'll have to make them brief (sorry!) but I'll try to cover all my points. So, without further ado...
The International Kissing Club by Ivy Adams
Publisher: Walker & Company
Paperback: 400 Pages
Cost: $9.99
Source: Ivy Adams! (:
Date Started: 3/27/12
Date Finished: 3/28/12
This one was a real shocker. At first when I read the blurb on the back of the book, I was really skeptical about the idea of a club where girls tally up how many kisses they've gotten and make a competition of it. It didn't sound like anything I would have picked up in the bookstore. However, I LOVED Tracy Deebs's last book, so I felt the need to pick up this one. Plus, I'd been following the updates on it for a while, and it didn't sound at all like a bunch of superficial/shallow girls vying for the attention of boys all over the world. When I won a copy of it I was really excited to read it and waited months to get it in the mail. After a while before my despair that it would never arrive almost consumed me I received it in the mail and immediately started to read.
Boy, this book is really, really, really GOOD. I couldn't stop reading despite the fact that I had a couple tests the next two days (not very smart) but it was worth it. I probably would've not paid attention to my studying and think about the books instead, sitting on my desk, mocking me, whispering that they wanted to be read...I hate that feeling ): Anyway.
The characters develop really well throughout the story. If I had to say which pairing was my favorite, it would DEFINITELY be Cassidy and Lucas. I found Lucas extremely charming and had an easy time imagining him in Australia being the handsome sun god doing what he does best. Cassidy was also very realistic in her thinking, saving us some unneeded strife later on in the book. Their romance was very sweet. I had to stop myself from flipping through the pages whenever another character popped up - but the other characters didn't have bad stories! I liked them all.
Another good thing about this book was that there were a lot of questions that I had in my head that were answered, which was good - things like 'Don't they think this idea is a bit skanky?' etc. It really helped the characters not look shallow, which I was afraid of. On the contrary, they were all very believable and even admirable in the way they thought.
The only problem I had with this book was that it sounded like it supported things kids shouldn't be doing, like underage drinking. It seemed like it was a normal thing to do in the book. Even Mei - the supposed 'smart one' - was drinking. I also wouldn't give this book to a 7th grader, which is the age group targeted, because it involves talk about sex. I know kids aren't ignorant these days (how many of them still believe in the stork), so
I really recommend this book for anyone really deprived of good, modern romance to read. It has not one, but FOUR amazing stories, and none of them will disappoint! If you've already read it and want more from Ivy Adams, check out the three writers who write under that name - Tracy Deebs, Emily McKay, and Shellee Roberts. I really hope they're going to write a sequel, too - I would love to hear more about the girls!
Rating: 4.5/5
A Beautiful Dark by Jocelyn Davies
Publisher: HarperTeen
Hardcover: 390 Pages
Cost: $17.99
Source: Library
Date Started: 3/28/12
Date Finished: 3/29/12
Yep, I picked this one up to read as soon as I finished the first book. (:
To be honest, I thought the beginning was extremely slow. Again, there's drinking, and they're not getting in trouble for it, but they're teens, that's what they do. If I were to say everyone at my school didn't have a sip at least once in their life, I would be lying.
Skye was a great character. She wasn't dumb or naiive, and she didn't get unreasonably angry like a lot of other characters. Ian could've been a bit better. He liked her so much in the beginning of the book, and then -SPOILER ALERT- his feelings just disappeared. It sounded like he went through all that trouble of trying to get her attention even though he didn't like her THAT much. Out of Devin and Asher, I have to say I actually liked Devin more until the end. Devin was just an innocent sweetheart. When Asher and Skye's relationship develops later on, I started to prefer him a bit over Devin. Then it was revealed that he'd never really had fun before until Skye came in to fix it, and it added to his appeal. Asher was a bit annoying because he was kind of a player, with girls clinging on to him every second, but he changes later on (well, he said the girls weren't anything to him).
Most readers would choose the 'bad boy', but I'll go and say straight out that Devin was, for a while, my choice. When it came to the climax, it went back to Asher, where it has stayed since. I do feel bad for Devin, but we'll see what happens in the next book - I was jumping for joy when I heard there was a sequel. It comes out later this year, I can't wait! (:
Rating: 4/5
Onwards!
A Beautiful Dark by Jocelyn Davies
Publisher: HarperTeen
Hardcover: 390 Pages
Cost: $17.99
Source: Library
Date Started: 3/29/12
Date Finished: 3/30/12
Am I a robot?
No, I just like to read THAT much.
I really like historical fiction, especially when there's romance in it (but I like ANYTHING with romance in it. It's hard for me to get motivated to read a book if there isn't any). This book had a good balance of history, from the jousts to Queen Elizabeth to the prejudice against the Catholics, but was also a good love story. The pages of the book was formatted to look uneven and old, which was nice!
The relationship between Ellie and her father was very loving. Even though he was a constant failure trying to get iron to turn to gold, and they were poor and shunned, she stayed with him through thick and thin. I really admired her character for being so loyal, even when she was getting annoyed with him.
I wish people in those days could have married for love, but it was just too tough back then for them to be able to. Ellie and Will were one such couple that, even though they were crazy for each other, it was hard for them to be able to pursue their relationship while she was poor and while he was trying to get his family out of poverty. His hatred towards her father wasn't unreasonable, but it was annoying how he blamed her at first for being the alchemist's daughter.
What surprised me about this book was that the antagonist wasn't the girl he was pursuing for money, Jane. In fact, she was one of my favorite characters. Although I thought I should hate her in the beginning, I really liked her afterward. She was so sweet, caring, and selfless. The next book is all about her, and I'm really looking forward to reading it!
Ellie and Will had a cute relationship. They were awkward with each other at times which was ADORABLE, and I was rooting for them the whole time. Will was torn between duty and love, and Ellie was having a hard time trying to control her love for Will when her friend was going to be engaged to him. Because of Will's lack of money, he wasn't a pompous brat, making him a lot more likable to both the poor Ellie and me.
I have to applaud this book for its use of language. The way other historical fiction is told is EXTREMELY fake-sounding to me, like they're trying too hard to make it sound like a story told way back when. There was another novel I read involving Raleigh and Elizabeth, just like this one, but if I had to choose between books I would soooo choose this one. It sounds much more mature in the way it's told, and a lot less strained.
Can't wait for the sequel, all about the darling Jane (: I hope Will and Ellie make another appearance, too. I would love to see how they're doing.
Rating: 4/5
I was gonna review one more book here, but I'm pretty drained from writing all of that. I promise to get that review and the review I was supposed to do for Matched done by Friday. If you have any books you want me to read, please suggest them. I'm down to my last two ):
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