The Clasp by Sloane Crosley These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly Sofia Khan is Not Obliged by Ayisha Malik

We All Looked Up, All Lined Up, Hopeless

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

No, that's not a line from some angsty pop-rock song - I just thought I'd do a quick round up of some of the books I've read recently that have been so-so.



WHAT'S THE DEAL? It's the end of the world as we know it. Four or five (or too many) teenagers try to figure out how to spend the rest of their lives. 

ANY GOOD? I was intrigued by the premise and the cover was interesting, so I was looking forward to reading We All Looked Up. The first chapter was strong. I was drawn into Peter's world quite quickly and I thought it would be a bit like The Beginning of Everything, which I really enjoyed. However, another point of view was introduced and I inwardly groaned. I've grown to dislike YA with alternating points of view because it seems increasingly popular and is hard to do well. So, imagine my dismay when another point of view was added and another (and maybe another - I can't remembers how many altogether). Add to this a host of supporting characters and it just became too much. I understand the author wanted to show different reactions to the event but I didn't feel like they were genuine except for Peter. The story lines became too far fetched and spread to thinly. I really disliked the Andy and Bobo characters and everything that happened as a consequence of them. The ending was very strange but by then I was too exhausted to be terribly bothered. Unfortunately, this book lost me a third of the way through but I kept hoping the spark from the first chapter would return. It didn't. 

ADD TO BASKET? I think many people will love this book. Especially people who like their characters to say yo at the end of everything. Yo. 



WHAT'S THE DEAL? Sky doesn't do relationships but that all changes when she meets the mysterious, broody (aren't they all?) Holder. However, there's more to Holder's broodiness than tattoos and too much Bon Iver. Sky soon finds out more about herself than she bargained for. 

ANY GOOD? Continuing with my quest to find New Adult novels that shatter my preconceived notions*, I decided to try a Colleen Hoover novel. Colleen Hoover is heralded all over the internet but I've always been put off by the price of the Kindle books- they're mid-range for Kindle and I usually only that and above for books I desperately want to read. Still, I took the plunge and picked Hopeless, which I soon discovered is YA but never mind. I liked it! I like Colleen Hoover's style of writing and there was more to the story than the romance - although it is definitely a romance novel. It didn't go exactly where I thought it was going and dealt with some very heavy issues in a really well thought out way. I will try another Colleen Hoover book at some point - hooray!

ADD TO BASKET? If you like books by authors such as Sarah Dessen and Jennifer Echols (two of my favourites!)




WHAT'S THE DEAL? Dallas 'Julie Taylor' Cole is the daughter of a college football coach. Dallas hates football players because she was burned by one in high school (no, not literally). However, of course one cannot judge all football players by the same yard stick, and she finds herself enamoured with one whose name I cannot remember but let's call him Tim Riggins.  

ANY GOOD? Continuing with my adventures into NA, this was more along the lines of what I expect from NA. I liked it in the beginning, the main character was witty and I even got past her name being Dallas and the fact that she's a dancer (I told you they're all dancers or artists!) However, halfway through, she turned into someone completely different. I didn't get why she was so emotional all the time and I really didn't get why she didn't like her dad. Dallas was too much of a Debbie Downer for me (which was highlighted more because I was reading Party Girl and that main character is like a ball of sunshine). The tone reminded me of Easy by Tammara Webber, which I didn't really like. I prefer my college books to be light hearted, such as Secret Society Girl or the Bowler University series. 

ADD TO BASKET? If you like general college romance filled with will they/won't they, go for it. 



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