Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . . 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future. 




At first, I didn't want to pick this one up. I never really liked Cinderella and the premise didn't really appeal to me. I know, how stupid was I? Because this one is freaking EPIC!


Cinder is about a 17 (?) year old Cyborg named Cinder. She works a mechanic in New Beijing to support here stepmother. One day prince Kai comes in and wants her to fix his android. In the mean time, there is also a plague terrorizing the world. Combined with the Lunars that are constant threat, Cinder is a book full of awesomeness.


Marissa Meyer is an awesome writer. The characters she created were so real and lovely. I especially loved Cinder. She was brave, caring and had a mind of her own. Also Iko, her android, was amazing. She is malfunctioning, which makes her so unique. I liked Kai too, but wished we saw a little bit more from him. But there are going to be 3 more books in this series, so I'm sure we'll see plenty of him.


The story is so unique and well thought out. However, I could predict the major twists. I didn't mind though, because they were well executed. I can't wait for the other books in this series. Scarlet, the sequel, will involve Little Red Riding Hood!


What can I say? I loved everything about this book. From the characters to the setting and the writing style. So naturally, I'm going to give Cinder 5 stars! 


5 out of 5 stars! 

Crossed by Ally Condie

Rules Are Different Outside The Society 
Chasing down an uncertain future, Cassia makes her way to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky--taken by the Society to his sure death--only to find that he has escaped into the majestic, but treacherous, canyons. On this wild frontier are glimmers of a different life and the enthralling promise of a rebellion. But even as Cassia sacrifices every thing to reunite with Ky, ingenious surprises from Xander may change the game once again. Narrated from both Cassia's and Ky's point of view, this hotly anticipated sequel to Matched will take them both to the edge of Society, where nothing is as expected and crosses and double crosses make their path more twisted than ever.

Even though I hadn't heard to many great things about Crossed, I still decided to pick it up and decide for myself. I did enjoy Matched, so why would Crossed be any different? And besides, with such a pretty cover that matches Matched? I just wanted to have it. Unfortunately, Crossed was a huge dissapointment.


Ky is send to the Outer Provinces to fight the Enemy. From there he escapes to the canyons. Cassia, who is determined to find Ky, gets relocated to the Border Provinces. From there on out, she tries to find Ky. 


While I liked Ally Condie's writing style in Matched, I couldn't appreciate it in Crossed, because it didn't match the story. That is one of my major complaints. Cassia and Ky are in the Outer Provinces, a rough wasteland, and they are at war. But Ally Condie still maintained the poetical style of Matched, while it should have been rougher. 


I also couldn't connect with Cassia and Ky at all. They have so much bigger things to think about, but all they could think about is each other. Cassia didn't really think so much of her parents. Sometimes a little about Bram, but not much. This seemed a little unrealistic to me. Especially Cassia annoyed me a lot. 


The characters introduced in Crossed were okay. I liked Eli, but the others didn't do much for me. And even though you get inside Ky's head in Crossed and we don't see too much of Xander, this book totally made me team Xander. 


Then there is the Enemy. Who is the Enemy? By the end of this book I still had no idea. Maybe this was explained in Matched and I just forget, but I can't remember. Hopefully Ally Condie will explain this in Reached. 


If you ask me, this book could have been 250 pages shorter. If you read Matched and you are determined to finish the trilogy, like me, then I would give Crossed a try. Otherwise I wouldn't be bothered.


2 out of 5 stars.

The Hunger Games movie!

 

I know The Hunger Games isn't out in the US yet, but today was the premiere here in the Netherlands. I won't do a review just yet, so I won't spoil the movie for you, but I can tell you it was FREAKING FANTASTIC!


I LOVED IT!


Seriously, I can't wait for Catching Fire to come out now. The actors and film directors did such an amazing job.


Big love for this film. Let me know what you think after you've seen it!

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater 

Published: August 1st 2009
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages hardcover: 390 

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can’t seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human… until the cold makes him shift back again.Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It’s her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

I bought this book with sky high expectations. I've head so many great things about this book, but it didn't live up to my expectations at all. I did not even finish it unfortunately. The cover is absolutely gorgeous. Props to the publisher, because the blue lettering is really cool. However, it's the story that counts. 

I could not connect to Grace or Sam. I did try, but the only hobbies they had, I felt like, were being obsessed with one another. I like for characters to have some debth and to have other friends than just their love interest and I didn't feel like that was the case in this book.

I struggled to get through it, but 2/3 in the way I gave up. I wanted to like Shiver, I really did (then I would have to buy the other pretty books in the serie as well, haha), but couldn't. It just felt flat and very similiar to Twilight.

A lot of bookreviewers do seem to love this book. Everybody's taste is different, so don't let me discourage you from reading shiver. But for me, it just wasn't worth it.


1 out of 5 stars.

Also: I don't want to discredit Maggie Stiefvater, because I also read the Scorpio Races and that one was pretty good. 

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

Published: February 14th 2012 

Publisher: Walker Childrens 

Pages hardcover: 292 

Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance. 
Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in. 
It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for. 

Can I first say that I love Robin Hood? Because I do. Ever since I was young I have loved the story about the young noble thief that lives in the wood and steals from Prince John. I have watched the Disney movie several times and therefore I just had to read this book. And it was good, it was, but not amazingly perfect. However, I still enjoyed a whole lot.

In this book one of Robin's merry men is Scarlet, who goes by Will Scarlet. She is the real thief of the group and very secretive about her past. Only Robin, John and Much, the members of the band, know that she really is a girl. When her past is catching up to her, she has to start to open up to her band, and letting people in is the last thing she wants.. or think she deserves.

The writing style of this book is brilliant. Scarlet's voice is very rough and brave and it fitted her and the story perfectly. While I normally don't like it if a book isn't written in normal English (I could not get into Blood Red Road), for once it didn't bother me. Instead of 'of course' it would say 'course' and instead of 'was' it would always say 'were', but it fitted and made the story extra good. Scarlet needed to be rough in order to keep it all together and it fitted the time in which the book takes place.

 I loved the setting of this book - I felt like I was there with them in the woods - and I loved the adventure. I thought Scarlet was an amazing, very well fleshed out character. She had flaws which made her even more real. I also really liked to sweet Much who stood at Scarlet's side. Robin Hood was pretty amazing and also Little John gave the book a funny twist. Only Robin could lighten up a little at times, but I still loved him. He was noble and caring. 

The romance was pretty good. You know from the start that Scarlet has feelings for Robin and even though he likes her too, nothing happens for a really long time. There is a lot of miscommunication in this book and sometimes I just wanted to scream 'Kiss already!' at them. However, it fitted the story of Scarlet and Robin, who are more similar than you might think.  

 The ending was to abruptly for my taste. I wanted to know what would happen next and it just ended. I was left with some unanswered questions.I also felt Gisbourne, the villain, could have been fleshed out a little bit more, but overall I really liked the story. If you like adventure, you should definitely give this one a try. 

 3,5 out of 5 stars.

 This book needs a sequel. Why isn't there a sequel? A.C. Gaughen, write a sequel!

Article 5 by Kristen Simmons

Article 5 by Kristen Simmons 

Published: January 31th 2012
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages hardcover: 364

New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., have been abandoned.
The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes. There are no more police—instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior—instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested usually don't come back. Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren't always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it's hard for her to forget that people weren't always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. It's hard to forget that life in the United States used to be different. Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the military. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow. That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings—the only boy Ember has ever loved.    

Article 5 was everything I wanted it to be and more. It is quite a dark dystopian and I loved it. This future of the US is terrifying. If you don't stay under the radar and obey the Moral Statues you get send to prison or worse. Ember's mother is caught for breaking Article 5, basically being a single mom. When she gets arrested,  Ember is sent to a reform school for girls. Ember is determined to break out and save her mom. 


This isn't your dystopian where some things are wrong and it is not pleasant, but you'll live. No. It is a dystopian where people who won't obey get beaten up or killed. Where you can't trust anybody. The pace is great and the story is amazing. It is so realistic it gave me chills. I could picture everything in my head even though I sometimes really didn't want to.


The characters are what really made this story. Ember was strong and fierce, maybe a little naive, but she had to be in order to make it through. But Chase, oh Chase, he is just amazing. He has been through a lot and makes mistakes, but he loves Ember more than anything in the world. He is one of the best male protagonist out there for sure. He has been scarred, but still tries to protect Ember, even though there is a lot at stake for him. Also Sean, one of the soldiers from reform school, was a great secondary character. I loved how he was woven into the story and tied everything together. 


I can't believe there isn't a hype surrounding this book. It is definitely one of the best dystopians out there and I really encourage you to read it. I will preorder the second book for sure! I wish it could be 2013 already..


5 out of 5 stars!

My favorite books of 2011!

As we start a fresh year (a year full of books to read!) I wanted to share with you my favorite books of 2011. These are the ones I read in 2011, so not just the ones published.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Delirium was one of my favorites. This book got me into the whole dystopian genre and therefore I love this book even more. The characters are amazing, the romance gushing and heart-breaking and the writing style is almost poetical. I can't really describe it. If you haven't read it, you should read it yourself. The first 70 pages or so are a litte bit slow, but you just have to read through it. Believe me, it's worth it. 


Goodreads page

The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins
I read the Hunger Games trilogy in the beginning of 2011 and I just fell in love with it. I read all the books back to back in less than three days. Mockingjay wasn't as good as the first too, but I still loved it. They are such page turners. I can't wait for the movie to come out in March! 


Goodreads page

Divergent by Veronica Roth
With all the buzz around Divergent, how could I not have read it.  I have a lot of love for Delirium, but Divergent has to be my favorite debut of 2011. This book had me on the edge of my seat. It got me thinking about the idea behind the factions and I really like that about a book. Also Four was a great love interest and Tris was such a strong heroine. I'm so excited about Insurgent in May! 


Goodreads page

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Yes, in 2011 I finally gave in on reading Anna and the French Kiss and I'm so glad I did. I loved this book so, so much! The setting in Paris, Anna, St. Clair, it was all just amazing. It's deeper than you're average chicklit. Every time I feel bad, I pick this book up. I haven't read Lola yet (I'm waiting for my delivery to arrive), but I definitely will. If you haven't read this book, READ IT!


Goodreads page

The Maze Runner trilogy by James Dashner
I read the whole Maze Runner series and I loved every single one of them. These books are suspensefull and action packed. If you loved the Hunger Games, you should give this series a try. My favorite out the three of them are the Maze Runner (the first one) and the Death Cure (the third one).  


Goodreads page

Where She Went by Gayle Forman
I read if I stay and really liked it, but the sequel Where She Went I loved. This book had me tearing up the entire time. I felt the pain and love Mia and Adam felt and for an author to do that, you have to be very good. This is a book that I would recommend to ANYBODY. 


Goodreads page

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor 
Last (but certainly not least!), a 2011 debut. I loved Daughter of Smoke and Bone. The story is set is Prague and Laini Taylor's descriptions are so vividly, that you feel like you're with Karou in Prague. Her writing style is amazing and Karou is a kick-ass protagonist. The whole story itself with Brimstone and his teethshop were so unique to me. I just loved it. 


Goodreads page






So, those were my top favorites of 2011. Other honourable mentions are Shatter Me by Tahere Mafi, Across the Universe by Beth Revis, The Summer series by Jenny Han, The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa and Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. If you haven't picked one of these up, please do. And let me know what you're favorite reads of 2011 were! 

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Published: October 6th 2009
Publisher: Vintage
Pages hardcover: 440  

Prince Aleksander, would-be heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, is on the run. His own people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battletorn war machine and a loyal crew of men. 
Deryn Sharp is a commoner, disguised as a boy in the British Air Service. She's a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being discovered. 
With World War I brewing, Alek and Deryn's paths cross in the most unexpected way…taking them on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure that will change both their lives forever.

Leviathan is the first steampunk book I've read in my life and I really, really enjoyed it. The concept of the book is very cool. The whole idea of steampunk is that the society is far ahead of its time. The book is set in World War I, but instead of having the Allies and the Central Powers like we're used to, you have the Darwinists and the Clankers. The Allies experimented with the DNA of animals and now they have these incredible beasts that they use as weapons. The Clankers, on the other hand, have very experienced technology. They have gigantic robots as weapons. In most books the steampunk aspect has to do with technology, but this time it also had to do with nature, DNA and genetics. 


I love reading about the World Wars and especially with this new take on it. It made it all really exciting for me. The world building was phenomenal and I could picture everything in my head (but there are these amazing pictures in the book if you need help). The book is action packed and hard to put down.


Then there are these amazing characters. In the beginning of the book the Archduke Frans Ferdinand and his wife Sofia are killed in Sarajevo. With four of his father best trusted servants Alexander escapes from Austria. At that moment he is just a little boy, 16 but mentally just 12. In the few weeks that follow you see him change, growe up and making decicions on his own. I really loved him. In the beginning I just wanted to hold him, but in the end I admired him. He is loyal, good-hearted and clever. Then you have Deryn, a 15 year old English girl that passes as a 16 year old boy called Dylan to join the airforce. On her first day with the airforce she boards the big airship the Leviathan. There she is the bravest one of them all. She is so though that I almost felt like I was reading about a boy, but at some moments you can still see she's a girl which I really liked. She has a big love for flying and for the beast and you could sense that through the book. 


Scott Westerfeld is an amazing author. I've read Uglies too, but I liked this book so much more. The creativity in this book with the Darwinists was amazing and he created some great protagonist. However the ending seemed a little abruptly and I would like to see the relationship of Alek and Deryn grow more. Thankfully, there is a second book called Behemoth and a third book called Goliath. I will be picking up Behemoth soon. 


Leviathan was an excellent read that I would definitely recommend. 


4 out of 5 stars.