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Unputdownable Books
Established back in 2011, Unputdownable Books is my way to help out indie authors by posting reviews of their books, and other marketing posts for blog tours. Of course, I also review other non-indie books just for pleasure. :D
Well, Cassandra Clare has been hitting it big with her recent movie franchise of the Immortal Instruments, City of Bones and then she writes a spin-off she calls, the Infernal Devices, where we are told the story about Shadowhunters during Victorian London. Okay, so, I was very reluctant to pick up this book. But thinking back on how I read and loved Clare’s other books and the first book of the series, I convinced myself that it’ll take me awhile to ‘fall in love’ with the characters. And when I finished this book. I felt both love and hate. I hated the characters. Tessa, Jem and Will, especially. I hate love triangles and I don’t understand why writers find the urge to always include it in their books. I hated how naive Jessa is and how easily it was for everyone to fall in love with each other. I’m hoping so much that the third book will help me change my mind about the main three characters.What I did love about the book was the plot, the action, the machines, the controversy in The Clive (the Shadowhunter Government), the cat and mouse chase to find Mortimer (the antagonist) and overall, Magnus Bane (the warlock). He always likes but always denies helping Shadowhunters when they need someone healed or just to summon a demon when they have a question or two to ask them.
To sum it all up, I am very conflicted about this read. I loved it and at the same time I hated it. Now, I’m pondering whether or not it’s worth it to pick up the third installment that may be the only thing that’ll tip the scales and help me make the decision of whether or not I loved the series or hated it.
I can’t begin to express how much this book touched my heart and how much I loved the main character, Tate. I’ve been bullied throughout my elementary and highschool years inside and outside of school. So, I can relate to the bullying Tate has gone through. The book kept me up all night, it made me cry, laugh and then very angry. It wasn’t predictable, it was unique and really good. There was so much angst and pain emanating from the pages that I couldn’t help but sympathize with the main character. And the fact that Tate was strong, determined and a fighter who never gives up just added to my love for the book. She wasn’t too keen on fighting back at first but her strength to embrace the pain and go through every day of highschool with her head held up high is such an inspiration.
The plot had the simple, best friends turned enemies and then fall in love. Sounds cliche yes, but Douglas manages to make it her own and to string together the simple outline with a whole bunch of events that aren’t your usual romance incidents but something original for once and kudos to her for coming up with something creative with Bully.
Bully is an amazing heart-felt story that will make your heart weep. A sensitive topic, but something I’m sure a lot of readers can relate to. A beautiful addition to the New Adult genre. I’m definitely looking forward to the sequel.
I don’t understand why this scary and creepy as hell series isn’t on every shelf in every bookstore in every country around the world! It is one of the best woman friendly horror books out there. And the most well-written one too. On Demon Wings is part five in the Experiment in Terror series and by far the scariest. Perry Palomino is a Portland girl with special abilities and Dex Foray is a cameraman from Seattle. They somehow end up in a crazy scary situation, they indirectly meet and end up filming an online show called ‘The Experiment in Terror Show’ together. Perry is the host and Dex, the cameraman. Hence, each book is spent at a different location where these two get bloody, bruised and scared just so they can put up a new episode to the show. And all those months spent investigating haunted hotels, apartments, islands and lighthouses ends up attracting really bad for our main character Perry. It was something so bad that this thing followed her home.
The book scared the living daylights out of me. I even had to stop reading for a few hours so I can get the creepy crawly feeling to go away before I dive in again. I have to say, I really missed this series and it’s really good to be back. There is something about the way Halle wrote this series that makes you come back over and over again. There is nothing better than a book that will make you swoon and faint all in one go.
I don’t know how Halle does it but she always comes up with a better and new plot for each book in the series. It was in no way repetitive and you can tell she wants to avoid repeating herself because every time there's a hint of predictability she retaliates with something way out of the box.
And the characters, wow. Talk about realistic, and fifty shades of messed-up. You can’t go wrong with a former junkie and a sort of psychotic.
Overall, On Demon Wings is a brilliant addition to the Experiment in Terror series. Demon possessions, mutilated animals, exorcisms and ghost visits. What can go wrong with that? This is one indie writer everyone has to look out for, she’s hitting it big.
Deadly Cool was one of those really talked about books of 2012. It was something that was buzzing all around the book blogging community and being part of that community it was hard not to get caught into the web of book buzz. From the looks of the cover itself it looked a lot more mature but the contents weren’t.Where do I start… ah yes. Let’s start with the plot of the book. The book was about these two teen girls finding a dead body of another teen girl in the room of a teen boy. Then the two teen girls set out to figure out who the killer is to save the name of the teen boy. Yeah, original right? (sarcasm intended). It may be kind of new in the genre. But it isn’t in a bigger scale. What is new now-a-days? All the new ideas are well, not exactly new.
The plot didn’t do much for me. It was light, extremely predictable and well, not very ‘wow’. But good news for parents, this book is very clean. There was minimal swearing, not much blood and not really much to go around in the romance department. So, this is a safe read for you teens.
As for the writing style, like I said above, it was clean. The swearing have been censored, the descriptions, inner monologues were all adequate to the genre. The characters on the other hand, didn’t bother me much. They can be obnoxious at times, but other than that. I think they’re pretty great characters to follow.
Overall, Deadly Cool was an interesting read. I don’t think I’ll be reading the next two books in the trilogy. But the book was still an enjoyable read with a predictable plot, and characters you’ll like.
I must be really tired of the paranormal romances because I didn’t find myself attached to the characters, the plot or the entire book like I usually am. I still enjoyed the book but on a different level. Wicked Destiny was very fast-paced, page-turning and action-packed. I only wished there wasn’t a love triangle/square and wished even more that our protagonist, Sloane was a much stronger character. Her inability to live on after being left behind by her ex-boyfriend, Declan was excessively hard to read without sometimes rolling my eyes.
She changes her look, her style and her hair just to ‘hide’ the person she was with her ex, Declan. Then another guy comes in and starts ‘chasing’ after her like a dog. And of course, she gives in so easily. Even though she pretended not to care. The romance with the new guy Viktor, was too quick for my liking. But then, in the back of my head, I had to contradict myself and think that maybe I should give Sloane a break. She is pretty self-destructive and that’s not entirely her fault. Bottom-line is I can’t stand self-destructive main characters, so Sloane was pretty hard for me to get used to. The minor characters on the other hand, I liked a lot. Shay, the best friend and the bar manager, Jared are my favorites.
Overall, I enjoyed Wicked Destiny, it had a solid paranormal plot, minor characters that rocked and the only thing that kept me from giving this book 5 stars was the self-pitying characters and the love triangles/squares. And a note, for the author, keep writing! I can’t wait to read what you’ll come up with next.
I was reluctant to continue the ‘Matched’ series, because I lost the drive to continue it even though I liked the first book a lot. I remember loving the poetic writing style and how beautifully the plot was written out in each chapter. But I learned not to expect the second book will be as good as the first one. And true to my expectations, Crossed by Ally Condie was disappointing. It did have the same poetic writing style and beautiful breezy formatting and plot division. But it was too poetic that I just started getting bored really fast.
There was too much inner monologuing and way too much references to actual poems. And eventually, the book felt like it didn’t have much substance.
The plot continues where the first book left out and follows the characters Cassia and Ky, each getting their own chapters right after each other. I usually loved how some authors like to divide the chapters like that and the way we get to know what's on the mind of both the female and male protagonist. But in this book, I just hated it. And the only thing the book made me feel was impatience because I wanted the book to end!
Crossed by Ally Condie is well-written but lacks the plot and factor to keep a reader interested. A good read for the fans of the ‘Hunger Games’ and ‘Divergent’
I’ve known Peggy for almost a year now and I didn’t understand why I didn’t find the urge to pick up one of her many awesome books until this one. I regret missing out on the wonderful writing of Peggy Martinez. Sweet Contradiction instantly became one of my favorite books of the year. Not only did it take me only a couple of hours to read, but it was really really good. I’m a bit disappointed that the book was so short! The plot was well thought of, and definitely one that keeps you reading. It wasn’t the fighting action type of plots, it was the more realistic life plots about small town girls leaving home for four years and only comes back when something terrible happens. Unfortunately, something bad did happen and our main character has to return to a place she never wants to go back to.
Beth Michaels was a wonderful protagonist, she was tough most of the time and vulnerable the rest of the time. She grew up with parents who used religion to verbally abuse her as a child. That made her hate her parents and made her very weary about religion. Her only friends were the Collin’s, Jennifer and her mom. They were the only two people who kept her going during all those years of abuse as a child. I admired the strength Beth had to be able to suffer that much for so many years. Then Matthew Wright comes in and breaks all her dating rules and gives her a sense of hope when it comes to life and religion.
Sweet Contradiction was a beautiful read. The plot, romance, and characters were simple and yet, so good. An amazing summer read for those who enjoy short romances in countrysides. I absolutely loved the book and I can’t wait to read the sequel! Peggy Martinez is an excellent writer and she has definitely got herself another die hard fan to fawn over hers books (all of them)!
I may have just bought this book because of the cover. I had a moment of weakness and the cover looked like the book had a lot of realism, drama, and a whole lot of tense romance. But I was wrong. The cover said one thing, but the contents of the book said another. The Perfect Play is in fact a well-written book. It had great characters and wonderful dialogue but the plot was missing a whole lot of… well… everything. The book was excessively light. It even made me stop reading once or twice. I eventually got bored of the storyline and I wanted so desperately just to stop reading because well… there was absolutely nothing going on.
Don’t get me wrong, I like the whole Playboy Quarterback gets tamed by an independent Event Planner and all that. But come on. There has to be something more than the predictable Playboy gets tamed. I’m a little disappointed at how much forced drama there was. It wasn’t even the type of drama to be shocked about. They literally had a crying fest and it was all because of silly confessions of the past. They even thought they would lose each other over it. Honestly, their ‘secrets’ wasn’t a big deal at all anymore.
Bottom line is… the book was okay. It’s a great read for romance lovers because of the tension, characters, dialogue and the cliche plot but I do warn you, do NOT expect to have much going on. Or to cry over anything in the book. Read at your own risk.
I didn't like the first book much then the second book became a lot more interesting and then this book just didn't hook me in. I think I might be losing my love for the Paranormal Romances. :( Now, off to finish all the Paranormal romances on my shelf. :( I'm hoping the rest of the books I have are good.
New Adult or NA, the newest genre to make it’s way in the market and is currently the hottest thing in the Indie sector of publishing and book blogging. I haven’t read many of NA books yet and this book marks the 3rd book I’ve read in the genre. I’ve learned to not expect much from books since I always gave bad reviews to the books I expected way too much from. So, I read this book with zero expectations and I have to say. I loved it!
The beginning was a bit hard for me to get into, the writing seemed a bit off and I found it hard for me to click with the main character and there seemed way too much predictability but once things started picking up I went through the book really quickly. If I didn’t have 2 Jobs, I would have finished the book right before the Aug 16th.
Haygert put in domestic abuse, violence, polo (the sport) and saving animals into the story and that gave the whole book its depth and page-turning element. Though the book was based around the cliché romance, it was very unique and original in it’s own way. I even cried a few times as the main character tries to save an abused horse from itself and the heartbreaking moments between her and the man she is too scared to want.
All together, the book was a wonderful summer read. It was heart wrenching, beautiful and all together swoon-worthy. Haygert just needs to keep writing to improve the inner monologue of the main characters. So I’m confident after her fourth or fifth book, she will nail it!
To be frank, I thought I would hate this book. I thought that it would be one of those books that write prose poetry and it would be one of those books that take half a series to actually get to the good parts. I even thought I would hate the book. And boy, was I wrong.
The book had characters you’ll love, plots to die for and plot twists to steer you off roads. The Selection is about a working class young woman who was raffled into a competition to win the heart of Prince Maxton. She is one of 35 girls who will fight to get a chance to date and fall in love with the next King. It sound so much like Cinderella? Surprising enough, the author may have gotten the inspiration from the old story but she made it unique enough to make it her own.
I’m amazed at how fast the book picked up and how easy it was to fall in love with the characters. Aspen, America, Maxton, even the other girls in the competition (good or bad) were all easy to like. The writing style was wonderful and easy to get through. For the veteran readers out there, you’ll probably devour this book in a day or two.
America Singer doesn’t fall for the prince. She is in love with someone else. Someone below her station. Someone who has to work many jobs to keep his mother and siblings alive. Someone close to reality and not a shining man in armor like the prince.
The world of The Selection involved Princess Diaries Makeovers, Balls, flowing gowns, summer dresses and a fantasy world that makes girls weak to their knees. Kiera Cass has definitely wrote herself a best-selling book teens will enjoy to the fullest. Only regret I have is my gradually decreasing joy for the Young Adult genre. I should have loved this book a lot more but I think it’s my time to move on to a different genre.
Beth Fantaskey’s Debut Novel Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark side was the reason why I bought two more books she’s written. One of them being the sequel to the book I just mentioned and then this one, a unique twist to the classic tale of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The book is centered on the descendants of Jekyll and Hyde. A teenage boy (Hyde) and girl (Jekel) both suffering the darkness that was brought forward by their ancestors. I was really intrigued by the concept of the entire book. I’ve always wondered what the children of Hyde would be like and this book just answered it. Hyde’s descendants suffer from black outs and nightmares. They also go through murderous rages.
I’m actually disappointed in the book. Don’t get me wrong; I loved the plot and the mysteries behind deaths, murders, and insanity. But everything else seemed extremely forced. Jill Jekel is insecure and believes that a gorgeous guy like Tristen Hyde would never show any interest in her. There’s nothing unusual about that. But getting into her thought process and listening to her ramblings and teenage angst was just way over the top. There’s a fine line between angst that deserves to be angst and being pathetic. Jill was being pathetic half the time. And Tristen isn’t helping with his brooding, British self and his determination to use Jill to get the formula to the concoction that made his entire family line.
As much as I want to swoon over the entire book, I just found it forced, and unrealistic. I enjoyed the whole mystery and trying to find the antidote to the Hyde’s curse. The romance in between was just too – we just met but I think I love you.
Honestly, Beth Fantaskey could have done it better. I don’t know what changed but I know she could have written it a lot better than this. Authors have their ups and downs too.
Jane Eyre is my all-time favorite book. I fell in love with it when I was 11 and I’m still in love with it now. I love the book so much that I actually bought a hand full of Jane Eyre retellings so I can read a fraction of the original Jane Eyre in different perspectives and themes. But a majority of the retellings I’ve read were just plain awful. But The Flight of Gemma Hardy was actually a refreshing best in all the retellings I’ve read of Jane Eyre.I think one of the mistakes that authors have made when they wrote a Jane Eyre retelling, was skipping Jane’s childhood. Thus, lacking heavily in character development. The Flight of Gemma Hardy, on the other hand, started in childhood and spent a considerable amount of time elaborating on Gemma Hardy’s early years, her struggles, and how and why she is the person she is now.
What makes this book really unique was the authors original touches to the book. For example, the book was set in the early 40’s and 50’s, the dialogue and occurrences were all different. Jane in this book actually had another boy in interest and it wasn’t always about Mr. Rochester.
Though I adored this book. The details and plot were confusing and really didn’t catch my interest. The books plot is a lot different than the original Jane Eyre book – so I spent the majority of the book waiting for the ex-wife to pop up only to figure out that there wasn’t one. So things, got really confusing and I just couldn’t catch on the last few chapters of the book. The book was very unpredictable at times. I don’t know if I should welcome that or not.
Another area the book was lacking was the obvious tension between Gemma (Jane) and Mr. Sinclair (Rochester). Instead of the romance gradually growing with tension and friendship. The entire romance felt forced and that disappointed me a little.
In short, The flight of Gemma Hardy was a wonderfully written book. It was a great retelling of Jane Eyre and it still had its originalities that makes the book unpredictable and different. Despite it’s flaws, the book was a breath of fresh air.
