Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan

Title: Will Grayson, Will Grayson

Authors: John Green and David Levithan

Quick Synopsis: (taken from the book)
It's not that far from Evanston to Naperville, but Chicago suburbanites Will Grayson and Will Grayson might as well live on different planets. When fate delivers them both to the same surprising crossroads, the Will Graysons find their lives overlapping and hurtling in new and unexpected directions. With a push from friends new and old--including the massive, and massively fabulous, Tiny Cooper, offensive lineman and musical theater auteur extraordinaire--Will and Will begin building toward respective romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history's most awesome high school musical.

Reflection: Not the type of book I usually read, but a good one nonetheless. Honestly, I wasn't sure whether or not I would like this one, but David Levithan and John Green are excellent authors, and I can definitively say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's a quick read, and definitely worth the time I invested in it. The characters are fantastic, flawed and yet loveable, and the plot, while being completely realistic and thus a little boring for me, is still a refreshing difference from what I usually read. The ending was my favourite part; it was so sweet and touching.

Scale of 1 to 10: 8.5

Random Quote: "'The idea is that for ten minutes, we forget that we have feelings. And we forget about protecting ourselves or other people and we just say the truth. For ten minutes. And then we can go back to being lame.'"

My Library Books - 3/30/13

This week, I returned Pride and Prejudice, The King of Attolia, Balefire, Legend, and Angelfall, and I got out:

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

The Obsidian Blade by Pete Hautman

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan

All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Title: Pride and Prejudice

Author: Jane Austen

General Thoughts: The story of Pride and Prejudice has always held a soft spot in my heart, although I'm rather embarrassed to say that I haven't read the actual novel until now. Now that I have, I have to say that I love it just as much as I thought I would. I think the reason why I love it so much is that I can really connect with all of the characters. Austen makes them so human, with a healthy balance of admirable traits and relatable faults, that you can't help but become attached to them and invested in their story. For example, I could really understand the difference between Darcy's attitudes towards strangers versus his friends and family, because I'm like that myself. I hate talking to people I've never met or don't know very well, but with my friends I'm completely convivial and social, making jokes and completely at ease. I feel like I can connect with each of Austen's characters, either because I see a partial reflection of myself in them, or because I see a reflection of someone I know. That connection is what made the story so enjoyable to me, and probably to countless others around the world, too.

A Necklace of Water by Cate Tiernan

Title: A Necklace of Water

Author: Cate Tiernan

Quick Synopsis: (taken from Goodreads)
The Balefire coven has tried and failed to replicate the original rite that bestowed immortality upon them centuries ago. Some were hoping to finally die, others to discover new reaches of power. Twins Clio and Thais weren't sure what to expect, but now they are forced to confront a hidden enemy who still wants them dead. In addition, they're coping with the love they both feel for the same person, who has finally made his choice.

General Thoughts: And so ends the Balefire series. I have to say, this book is by far my favourite out of the four. However, there were some small, niggling little holes at the end that I was annoyed at.

My Favourite Part: The action. Things in this book felt much more fast-paced than in the previous ones, possibly because all of the events take place within the span of, like, a week. It's also the culmination of the entire series. I also loved the few unexpected twists in the plot. (But, like Legend, I guessed most of what was going to happen.)

My Least Favourite Part: I can't tell you, because it would ruin the whole plot of the book. Suffice it to say that there was one very important thing that happens, and its reason for happening is not explained at all, when it really should have been. If that makes any sense.

Scale of 1 to 10: 7.5

A New Page

I just added a new page with a list of different authors' websites, just as a neat little reference. I'll add to this list as I find other sites. If you have any that you want to put on the list, just post a comment here I'll get right on it.

Some...Unusual Words

Since I'm a huge nerd, I thought I'd share with you guys some of my favourite words (which isn't weird at all). They mostly tend to be weird, wacky words that you can't often slip into everyday conversation without sounding strange.


The List: 
Anathema - 1. something or someone that one vehemently dislikes; 2. a formal curse by a pope or a council of the Church, excommunicating a person or denouncing a doctrine; 3. a strong curse
Antepenultimate - third-to-last
Mellifluous - sweet or musical; pleasant to hear
Pulchritudinous - having great physical beauty (only used with people)
Selcouth - strange, unusual, rare; marvelous, wondrous
Soporific - tending to induce drowsiness or sleep
Verisimilitude - the appearance of truth; the quality of seeming to be true
Vicissitude - 1. a change of circumstances or fortune, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant; 2. alternation between opposite or contrasting things


(I might add to this list every once in a while. I'll keep a running list of these on another page of my blog for all of my fellow logophiles out there.)

A Feather of Stone by Cate Tiernan

Title: A Feather of Stone

Author: Cate Tiernan

Quick Synopsis: (taken from Goodreads)
After seventeen-year-old Thais Allard loses her widowed father in a tragic car accident, she is forced to leave the only home she's ever known to live with a total stranger in New Orleans. New Orleans greets Thais with many secrets and mysteries, but none as unbelievable as the moment she comes face to face with the impossible -- an identical twin, Clio. Thais soon learns that she and the twin she never knew come from a family of witches, that she possesses astonishing powers, and that she, along with Clio, has a key role in Balefire, the coven she was born into. Fiery Clio is less than thrilled to have to share the spotlight, but the twins must learn to combine their powers in order to complete a rite that will transform their lives and the coven forever.

General Thoughts: So much better than the first two books. I have to say, Cate Tiernan's writing has really improved throughout the course of the series.

My Favourite Part: The action. And the further weaving of backstory to aid the reader in further empathizing with the characters. (That's just fancy talk for me loving, again, the histories of her characters that Tiernan has slowly revealed to us one tantalizing piece at a time.)

My Least Favourite Part: There's a certain specific thing that I realized that kinda weirded me out for a while. (I can't tell you what it is because then I'll be spoiling the book, so you'll just have to read it for yourself to find out what I'm talking about.)

Scale of 1 to 10: 7.0

A Circle of Ashes by Cate Tiernan

Title: A Circle of Ashes

Author: Cate Tiernan

Brief Synopsis: (taken from Goodreads)
After seventeen-year-old Thais Allard loses her widowed father in a tragic car accident, she is forced to leave the only home she's ever known to live with a total stranger in New Orleans. New Orleans greets Thais with many secrets and mysteries, but none as unbelievable as the moment she comes face to face with the impossible -- an identical twin, Clio. Thais soon learns that she and the twin she never knew come from a family of witches, that she possesses astonishing powers, and that she, along with Clio, has a key role in Balefire, the coven she was born into. Fiery Clio is less than thrilled to have to share the spotlight, but the twins must learn to combine their powers in order to complete a rite that will transform their lives and the coven forever.

General Thoughts: The second book in the Balefire series is definitely better than the first. There's much more danger and tension, and the love triangle that I had been so exasperated with has developed into something much more complicated, with a few unexpected twists along the way. Also, the minor characters of the Treize that were just briefly introduced in A Chalice of Wind are more fully fleshed out in this one, and I loved learning about the members' complex and confusing pasts and trying to connect them to the present.

My Favourite Part: The Treize. More specifically, its members, and learning about their pasts, their hopes and aspirations, their resentments and regrets. Jules, Sophie, Richard, and Marcel really developed as characters in this book, and Tiernan does a good job of dropping enough hints about Richard and Marcel's pasts without giving everything away completely. It definitely makes me want to keep reading the series to find out more about them.

My Least Favourite Part: The prose, again. I've mentioned already that it's too plain for my tastes, but that has gotten better. However, I have this weird thing where if a certain noun or adjective is used in a sentence, there has to be a space of one or two sentences before it gets used again, otherwise it sounds repetitive. I do this with my own writing, too, for English essays and the like. I hate repeating words or sentence structures. There were a few moments in the book that it happened; not enough to really tick me off, but enough to annoy me a little.

Scale of 1 to 10: 7.0

My Library Books

Because I'm poor (and my library doesn't collect fines), I get most of my books out of the town public library. Here's the list of books I currently have out:

Fiction

Balefire by Cate Tiernan

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

I'm trying to finish this before the Lizzie Bennet Diaries finishes next week. I only have about 150 pages or so left, so I'm hoping I can finish it over the weekend.





Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

I'm actually reading this because of the VlogBrothers, Hank and John Green. I'm watching all of their videos in chronological order, and the one I'm on right now is a book discussion about this book. That, and I never read it in high school. Figured I might as well read it now.



The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchet

Nonfiction

We Wish to Inform You that Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families: Stories from Rwanda by Philip Gourevitch

The Violinist's Thumb: And Other Lost Tales of Love, War, and Genius, as Written by Our Genetic Code by Sam Kean

Flu: The Story Of The Great Influenza Pandemic Of 1918 And The Search For The Virus That Caused It by Gina Kolata

Bloodlines & The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

Title: Bloodlines; The Golden Lily

Author: Richelle Mead

General Thoughts: So why am I doing a dual book review? Well, I read them both before I started doing this book blog again, so it'll just be a quick review. Plus, they're both from the same series, and I read them one after the other. I'm also kind of lazy.

I was really excited to read these books, since the series is a spin-off of the Vampire Academy series, which were so good. However, I was also a little apprehensive, because the story follows Sydney, an alchemist who appears in Vampire Academy but was never my favourite character. I needn't have worried. I enjoyed these two books just as much as I enjoyed VA, more so because I could relate to Sydney much more than I could Rose, the narrator of VA. Overbearing parents who have ridiculously high standards? Check. The expectation of perfection from everyone? Check. Love of learning? Double check.

Another great thing about the Bloodlines series? We get to follow the minor characters from VA, get to see them more fully fleshed out: Eddie, Jill, and Sydney. And, of course, there's Adrian. Quite possibly my favourite character out of all of them, with maybe the exception of Sydney. I can't wait to get my hands on the third one. The one bad thing about getting all of your books from the library? The endless wait list for popular books.

Scale of 1 to 10: 8.5