Seven Ways We Lie was purchased and thrust into my unwitting hands by the lovely Sass, one of my favourite book pushers, as an early Christmas presentSeven Ways We Lie was purchased and thrust into my unwitting hands by the lovely Sass, one of my favourite book pushers, as an early Christmas present. Despite the fact that I don’t read contemporary. Despite the fact that I have no interest in Teacher/Student relationships, despite the fact that I’m a miserable miser who hasn’t properly picked up a book in almost a year.
Everyone needs a Sass in their lives. Apparently, I needed this book too.
Reading this world set in Paloma Heights was like a breath of fresh air. Feminist, flawed characters, real pain, and secrets. So many secrets. There we some characters I liked right away (Olivia) and some characters I took a long time to like (Claire). And some I just plain never understood (Juniper). But I could never say I walked away from this book being a lesser person. Despite not liking Claire, I felt like I learned the most from her, felt her pain the most. So even in the parts that made me maddeningly angry, I found something to take away from in this book.
So, the book is about seven students – and one of them is having an affair with a teacher. Each student represents one of the seven deadly sins and most characters, in the end, over come their sin and find a way to heal.
Let me tell you though, that there were things I definitely loved about this book – and one of them was the rep.
First of all, we have a feminist kick ass main character who does not apologise for who she sleeps with, when and where. It was amazing. Then we have a pansexual character which just filled my heart with joy. It’s on the paper, btw. That’s how he ID’s – as pansexual. I could sing with joy.
There is a character who pretty much sings to being Ace but never actually says it on page, this also made me happy for all my Ace friends out there who could do with the rep.
There’s also cultural diversity a little bit which is, not going to lie, much needed to break up the otherwise white bread fest that this book would have been without it.
I thought the book was very well plotted and executed with enough meat to keep it going, unlike a common pitfall of contemporaries where there’s just not enough plot. Yet it still carries the best aspects of a contemporary by making its characters shine, and being character driven.
Over all, I loved this book and highly recommend you put it on your radar.
This review and others like it can be found on my blog ....more
This book was so much and more. Other than kind of meandering toward the end, it was a near perfect read for me. Stunning, beautiful and so amazing toThis book was so much and more. Other than kind of meandering toward the end, it was a near perfect read for me. Stunning, beautiful and so amazing to read. I highly recommend this book to other readers. ...more
I have to admit, I never would have read this book if the publisher hadn’t put it in my hands and said, “There. Read it.” They didn’t say they would sI have to admit, I never would have read this book if the publisher hadn’t put it in my hands and said, “There. Read it.” They didn’t say they would shank me if I didn’t, but I’m pretty sure it was implied.
And I would have been missing out. MISSING OUT, PEOPLE. If I hadn’t decided to read it.
Because You’ll Never Meet Me is a clever, fascinating look into the lives of two very special boys. One who was born without eyes but with the ability to observe his surroundings via echolation, and the other born with electromagnetism – what seems, at first, to be an allergy to electricity.
The story cleverly follows their letters to each other. A correspondence that grows from stranger hood, to a bond so intensely strong that I almost cried at their trials and tribulations.
Ollie and Moritz don’t seem to have anything in common at first, apart from both of them being very isolated, incredibly lonely boys. One of them isolated physically out in a cabin in the woods and the other isolated from his peers and other people because he feels like a freak.
I’m not going to go into too much detail about the book. That would be bad. Bad, Kat. Bad.
But the thing I didn’t expect is how atmospheric it was. I got such a sense of Ollie’s isolation, and the world of devoid he lived in. And such a sense of Moritz’s pain and suffering. Yet both boys filled me with so much hope that I fell into little pieces while reading it. Both boys made me love them with their candor and voice and Thomas should be praised for crafting two such dissimilar yet compatible characters.
A stunning book, a story well told and two characters who made me fall in love with them. You can’t ask for much more than that.
You can find this review and others like it on my Blog.
A review copy was provided to me by the publisher and no money was exchanged for this review. ...more
Not Otherwise Specified is the story of Ella, a girl struggling with all the labels in her life. Bi, eating disorder, dancing, black, etc.
Not OtherwisNot Otherwise Specified is the story of Ella, a girl struggling with all the labels in her life. Bi, eating disorder, dancing, black, etc.
Not Otherwise Specified was a breathless read. In that, no really, I felt breathless a lot of the time. The Narration was like an unending stream of consciousness funnelling you right into Ella's every uncensored thought.
You'll find all the hallmarks of a great Moskowitz novel here. Thorough characterisation, relationship heavy, stunning writing, heartbreak.
But what you'll also find it that there's nothing really new here either. Ella worries, in the novel, that the theatre auditioners would know her bag of tricks and I think it's the same for this novel. Moskowitz has a bag of tricks - great tricks, beautiful tricks, heart touching tricks, but they can start to also feel a little tired.
I didn't feel like Not Otherwise Specified was a stretch for Moskowitz. Teeth was deeper. Gone Gone Gone more heartbreaking, Marco Impossible more fun. Not Otherwise Specified felt, in comparison, like a nice book. And that's what I can say of it. I know I'm being unfair because writing about the eating disorder stuff and the bulling stuff must have been a real struggle for Moskowitz. She really reached deep for those.
And if anyone else had written it, I think I would have been more impressed, to be honest. But because it was a Moskowitz book, I expected more from it.
But this is where my excitement ramps up because A History of Glitter and Blood sounds very very different to the contemporaries that Moskowitz has written in the past. So Moskowitz is already expanding on her bag of tricks it seems, and I am so, so excited to see what she comes up for for that....more
Last Will and Testament started out really strong for me. Mostly because of Lizzie’s amazing narrative voice and unapologetic style. How unapologetic?Last Will and Testament started out really strong for me. Mostly because of Lizzie’s amazing narrative voice and unapologetic style. How unapologetic? Well the story starts out with her screwing another girl’s boyfriend when the police show up and inform her that her parents are dead.
Lizzie’s entire life changes then, when she has to adult-up and take on her two younger brothers while cleaning up her life at Radleigh university. To do that, she needs the help of her uptight TA, Connor Lawson.
Lizzie’s voice started out and remained the very best aspect of this novel for me. I would say there were a lot of great things about Last Will and Testament. Great characterisation, hot romance action, maintenance of drama and story line, good writing.
It was just the little things that got me, ya know? How quickly Connor and Lizzie’s relationship sparked up. The whole will-they-won’t they that came on really thick and fast and then just eased up abruptly in a way that made me question its legitimacy.
Don’t get me wrong, despite these criticisms it was still a great read, that I thoroughly enjoyed. And all the sexy times were greatly appreciated. No. Really.
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I just really loved Lizzie. Like so much. Such a flawed and well-rounded character. And Connor was delicious when he finally removed that stick from his ass. Oops, did I just say that out loud?
So whilst it wasn’t a perfect read for me, it was pretty damn good, and I think a lot of people are going to like this one....more
Every now and again you stumble onto a book that’s just magical, and for me, this one was it.
In it, Simon Spier is being blackmailed by a student becaEvery now and again you stumble onto a book that’s just magical, and for me, this one was it.
In it, Simon Spier is being blackmailed by a student because Simon is gay. If Simon doesn’t help Martin, then Martin will publish his personal emails with Blue, an anonymous boy from his school who he’s quickly falling in love with.
Simon has to deal with Martin, his burgeoning attraction to Blue, his close-knit family and his friends. It’s all a lot to take in but makes for a very rounded, fulfilling story. Everyone in this novel has agendas and secrets.
This is a well written book, Simon has a strong narrative voice that is realistic and still whimsical. I really felt for Simon’s struggles and the position he was in. This book deals with race, sexuality and gender and blends it all in beautifully.
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This book was exactly what I needed. Something light, fluffy and satisfying. If you’re looking for something deeper with more angst, maybe skip this one. But if you’re looking to walk away on cloud 9 feeling amazing about life than this is the book for you.
Its writing was solid though felt a little rushed in some parts. Toward the end, Simon’s narration became less precise and more general as the book raced toward an ending.
But over all, a really solid book from Albertalli and I’m excited to see what she does next. This book gave me all the feels and I’m sure it’ll do the same for you....more
Otherwise known as Tumble & BORE (sorry, I hadn’t seen anyone use that pun yet). Tumble & Fail: the most boring apocalyptic book ever. A Tumble & Fall
Otherwise known as Tumble & BORE (sorry, I hadn’t seen anyone use that pun yet). Tumble & Fail: the most boring apocalyptic book ever. A gentler, kinder soul might say that it’s a character-driven novel exploring the way three teens face the oncoming apocalypse. That gentler and kinder soul would be wrong. The apocalypse is treated like background radiation. It keeps getting mentioned, but it’s hard to see what the hell it’s got to do with the book. Honestly, you could remove it and most of the book would scarcely be affected which is problematic considering how much the book rides on that concept.
This book is made even more boring since, for a bunch of people about to possibly die, and have everyone they love die, these are the most disaffected people ever. No joke, the first hundred pages or so of this novel is people standing around going:
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“Hey, heard about that apocalypse thing?”
“Yeah, sucks. Wanna make out?”
“Sure.”
There you go. If you were interested in Tumble & Fall, you now have a basic grasp of the plot – times three! This is possibly the most disconnected and emotionless novel I have ever read. Even Michel Foucault’s History of Sexuality was more interesting because at least it was funny! Zan gets the closest to some kind of emotional impact, but it’s over a boy who died 10 months ago. Where’s the examining of one’s life, the search for the meaning of it all, the desperate despair at an uncontrollable fate? If you’re writing a story about the oncoming apocalypse, here’s a tip, why don’t some of the characters spend some time actually agonizing over it. This novel spends so much time trying to be cool, yet fails to be anything other than frustrating.
The writing is abysmal, especially when it’s trying to be clever.
“Two things people make time for at the end of the world: Free food and a party.”
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The two things everyone cares about is sex and doing all the illegal shit they couldn’t otherwise do unless the world was coming to an end. End times babies and our inherent affinity to breaking shit is proof of that.
Free food and a party? Don’t get me wrong, I will eat ALL the things if I know the end of the world is over. I’ll probably have cans of whipped cream on tap just so I can constantly be injecting it into my mouth. But a lame community center party with cocktail wienies? WHO DOES THIS?! You have a week to live people! It’s like you don’t even know how!
Here’s a tip:
-420 Party
-Booze
-Big ass speakers and a base.
-A packet of condoms (safe sex, kids! Even at the end of the world!)
-lube
-honey
-pine cones
-an enraged badger
-a bag full of feathers
-enough PVC glue to fill a vat
-a pool filled with corn flour slime
-inflatable pool filled with jello
-glow sticks
-whistles
-sparklers
-clothing optional policy
I don’t know about you, but that party sounds like it’d be totally illegal in at least 49 states but totally awesome in every single one of them! Boom. I should have written this novel.
Most of the time, unless I paid attention to the chapter header, it took me awhile to figure out who was who. I only figured out the difference between Zan and Sierra because one of them was constantly moaning about a dead boyfriend that I honestly couldn’t have cared less about. And the only thing that marks Caden’s chapters differently is that he’s checking out girls instead of boys and being even more disaffected than the other two characters. Which frankly seems like he bends the rules of the time space continuum to achieve.
What I want to know is, end of the world, why did Coutts pick the three most boring teenagers ever, living at the most boring place ever, to write about?
I stretched my brain to think about three characters I’d be even less enthused to read about and this was all I could come up with:
1. Someone whose goal is to document the full life cycle of the Boletellus obscurecoccineus fungus family before the end of the world. 2. A man desperately trying to convince family and friends to legitimately convert to Jedi-ism before the end of the world to save their mitochondrial souls (because he doesn’t really understand the force). 3. A mime trying to send a message of peace to the entire world through silent body motions – only to realize, sadly, that nobody cares. Because everyone hates mimes. Everyone.
Actually, I take that back. Those three people could actually manage to be more interesting.
Fail.
This book was given to me by the publishers for the purpose of an honest review. As you can see, there's no reason they would give me money, gifts or favors for this kind of stuff.
Okay, at page 156 this crossed over from boring to painful to read.
And it's not that I don't understand what the author is trying to do here. Low selOkay, at page 156 this crossed over from boring to painful to read.
And it's not that I don't understand what the author is trying to do here. Low self-esteem country girl, bully misogynistic husband, starting a new life and all that. It's probably mostly realistic. I've met enough couples like this - particularly country lads who couldn't wipe their asses without a woman around to help them with it. It's just that nothing happens. It's such a long, drawn out boring tale of lunch meeting after lunch meeting after coffee meet up and then a dinner meeting thrown in to round it off.
And whilst I understood why the main character was so painfully, ridiculously, annoyingly dumb, and even felt that her actions were in line with the character - this simply made that novel horrible to read.
But I'm nothing, if not, all about the edumacation, folks. So I'm going to provide a list of things to do, that this character definitely should have done, in case you ever find yourself in a similar situation.
Things you should do if you're leaving your partner:
1. Make copies of all financial papers. Bank statements, recent sales, deeds, debts, assets, superannuation details, payslips etc. (If you quit work to stay at home for your partner/family - remember to consider the superannuation that you've lost out on when calculating your financial worth.)
2. Seek legal advice. Make sure this lawyer or firm is not representing your partner. If you can't afford a lawyer and don't qualify for legal aid, investigate a mediator.
3. Make note of the date of separation.
4. Close any joint accounts.
5. Get your name off utilities as soon as you leave.
6. Don't sign anything without having it viewed by your lawyer.
7. Fuck everyone else. Seriously, just fuck them. Do what you need to do for yourself....more
Regardless of whatever else I say in this book – Such a Rush is a good book. Well-written, funny, smart, heart-touching. I devoured this book in a matRegardless of whatever else I say in this book – Such a Rush is a good book. Well-written, funny, smart, heart-touching. I devoured this book in a matter of hours. I ignored family on Christmas day to read it – which is okay, because they’re used to that.
But this doesn’t mean it was a perfect read. Leah was a brilliant but, other than Mr Hall’s brief appearance, she was the singularly likable character in this book. Smart, focused, complex, interesting – everything you want out of a main character except not a single other character in this book deserved to bask in her presence let alone be her friend or date her.
Ready to meet the grand poobah of douchebag love interests? You thought Daemon from Obsidian was bad? You thought Daniel Grigori or any other of those dudes was bad? In my opinion Grayson Hall would probably mop the floor with them. Daemon might have been rude, Daniel Grigori might have been a prick, but at least none of them assumed the main protagonist was a whore and blackmailed her into dating some other guy!
Grayson treats Leah despicably. Utterly, utterly despicably and her mercy for him and continued attraction to him was inexplicable to me. His concern with how much of a whore Leah was, was exceedingly frustrating. “I’m really attracted to you. It’s a shame I need to whore you out to my brother and that I’ve convinced myself you’re a filthy creature who has sex with anyone to get her way. Damn shame.” Don’t even get me started on her best friend, who I think I might have cheerfully taken out the back and slapped silly.
There is an annoyingly heavy focus on female purity, with the underlying text supporting the importance of not just the abstinence of sex – but the appearance of it too. This was misleading for me because the beginning of the novel didn’t seem like it would head this way. It was refreshingly free of the guilt-burden in relation to how young Leah lost her virginity. Some of the sexual elements were necessary to show the basic facets of Leah’s life. The rest of it was annoying in its persistence in punishing Leah for having a sex drive.
This novel, whilst I loved it, infuriated me. I was left yelling at the book – yelling at all the “rich kids” and their stupid faces and how they treated Leah again and again. How she always just let them off. The ending was also a little hodge podge and rushed.
Ultimately, though, it was a marvelously thrilling, lovable story. Prepare to want to hug and hold Leah, to bare your teeth at the world and want to try and make things right for her....more
Pushing the Limits, excuse my profanity, is a bastard to follow up on. It was such an emotional, powerful book, so neat and well-constructed, that I wPushing the Limits, excuse my profanity, is a bastard to follow up on. It was such an emotional, powerful book, so neat and well-constructed, that I was wary to pick up the next one. I needn’t have been entirely terrified, Dare You To is still a pretty good book with enjoyable things to reccomend it. I simply didn’t love it as much as I wanted to. I didn’t even cry once. It made me question, for a moment, if McGarry had lost her touch to regularly make me bawl like a little baby who got pricked by their first vaccination.
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A big, angry, devastated baby
To me, it’s construction and execution didn’t seem as tight and effortlessly fluid as Pushing the Limits. In Pushing The Limits, it really felt like the the characters and their relationships with each other, with the world, with their flawed perceptions were all part of an intricate dance in a wonderful universe where everything made sense. WHY DOESN’T EVERYTHING MAKE SENSE, MCGARRY?! WHY?! MAKE IT BETTER FOR ME!
In Dare You To, Beth, Noah’s goth friend from Pushing the Limits, is separated from her drug-addicted mother and forced to live with her rich uncle. This means:
New school
New town
New friends
No drugs, drinking or random hook ups.
This would be a lot of difficult life changes on their own but then comes Ryan. Perfect awesome school dude who has his own set of problems.
Only Ryan’s life isn’t perfect. His brother’s been kicked out of home and his parents hate each other. The unlikely couple is forced together and form a relationship that is sweet and respectful and nothing that Beth has ever had before.
So first issue: Dude, what happened with Isaiah? And no disrespect because this author is badass and everything. I just happened to kind of be shipping toward Isaiah/Beth because things just seemed to be driving at break neck speed in that direction. The direction in which my heart sings, double rainbows break out and I get to go live in Equestria with all my pony friends (Rainbow Dash, we would be the best of friends).
But, you know, I liked Ryan in the end. He was cool. Real cool. Romantic too. There were some nice gestures there, bro.
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In fact, he was so nice, the only real relationship I ended up contesting was Beth and her uncle’s. Ultimately, I could imagine Beth deciding she didn’t love Isaiah. That’s cool. Ultimately I could reconcile Beth’s 180 change in characterization, despite my issues with its story line. But the one thing I struggled with was the relationship between Beth and Scott, because this was a really pivotal relationship for Beth’s character development, and I was totally not feeling it. A good portion of the initial respect and tolerance between them is developed off page.
And then it just kind of takes a jagged, cutesy path that I didn’t feel was a natural progression. Of course, it doesn’t help that Beth had to change a lot in ways that I felt were unnecessary. Like you can’t be a good character if you dress like a goth, smoke some weed and like to drink occasionally. I guess I just felt it was hard to watch Beth change to other people’s expectations when a lot of those were a result of needs that didn’t seem to be met.
“I need to be there for my mother! I’ll give everything to help her- no wait. I’m cool. Totes seen the error of my ways. Let’s party, aye, Ryan?”
However, no matter how you feel, it’s still a well written, nice contemporary romance that made me all squishy inside. Up to individual tastes, but most people will mostly like it, so go ahead!
I’m not entirely sure if this review made sense because alcohol, drugs, and dressing in black seem to be a bad combination according to this book. But I guess, what I wanted, was more acceptance of Beth’s actual issues, as opposed to the outward issues. And that never seemed to be addressed fully. Her pain, her issues, were kind of swept aside with platitudes.
And, frankly, I was just in the mood for hardcore truths and badass emotional situations. Having a nice, lovely novel was good, but it just wasn’t the awesomeness I expected from McGarry. Because I love her. And I kind of wanted Unicorns and double rainbows, and Rainbow Dash to read me my favourite book.
Wait… I can still get that, right?
This ARC was provided to me by Harlequin. No money, gifts or favors were exchanged for this review. I mean, I tried to get some but they wouldn't answer my calls and then they were always busy...
So somebody told me this book was like Beautiful Disaster but not completely horrible, woman hating and nonsensical. I snorted, thanked thSo somebody told me this book was like Beautiful Disaster but not completely horrible, woman hating and nonsensical. I snorted, thanked them for the rec and went on my merry way.
So let me express this in the most calm and reasonable way I can. Easy by Tamara Webber is fantastic and wonderful and that person was 100% right.
I have to admit, the book and I didn’t get off to a great start. It begins with Jacqueline at college, bummed from getting dumped by her longterm boyfriend, almost getting raped before Lucas rescues her. So, for someone who is adamantly against rape being used and glossed over just to further a plot or have the hero seem heroic, I was decidedly unimpressed.
But it soon becomes clear that Webber has taken the topic of rape extremely seriously. In fact, by the end of the novel I was cheering and punching the air because this book was the best I’ve ever read an author handle the subject for contemporary readers.
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Normally, in books where the female MC is almost raped and saved by the hero, the rapist gets beaten up and left behind and the heroine goes on her merry way. And sometimes the rapist harasses her and the author covers the trauma for the heroine until the rapist is killed by the hero in the final battle and those two get to run off into the sunset.
What a freakin’ relief that Webber takes it really damn seriously – even though the beginning of the novel would lead you to believe that she wouldn’t. There was a point near the end of the novel where Jacqueline has to talk to a bunch of sorority girls about rape and I wanted to cry and cheer and do a little girl power dance.
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So I loved Jacqueline, I loved Lucas, I loved most of this book. I thought it was well written and reasonably well-paced and you know what? Seemed like it was actually written about college kids who actually do college things. I’m really glad I picked this one up. It was, indeed, a really fun, lovely read that I highly endorse. Also, Jacqueline’s slap down on Kennedy was epic – right to the end. She kicked serious butt....more
Some novels are debatable in their quality. Sometimes a novel can be like junkfood, but completely satisfying. Other novels are clearly made of betterSome novels are debatable in their quality. Sometimes a novel can be like junkfood, but completely satisfying. Other novels are clearly made of better stuff though less able to hold the simpler demographic. Speechless has the happy coincidence of being made of better stuff, but clearly satisfying on a simpler level.
Throughout my entire life, my father has had one reoccuring expression. This doesn’t include his, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right” speech which I’ve heard a thousand times and, YES, DAD. YOU’RE RIGHT. But his other thing that he says to me all the time in the hopes that I’ll eventually listen: “God gave you two ears and one mouth for a reason. Use them in that ratio, girl!”
Now that one I’ve never paid much attention to but I recognize the value in it. However, Chelsea Knot really gets it. One day her gossipy, thoughtless ways deeply and negatively impact another human being and she takes responsibility for it in a story that is worth telling and worth reading. She decides on a vow of silence as punitive response and in doing so learns a valuable lesson about life, friendship and love.
Let me just say, firstly, that this novel was very well written. Harrington clearly has a grasp on raw and emotive translations of concepts and she presents them in such a way that they feel natural and simple. I don’t like “Issue” books. Bullying, drugs and sex books that are built around hot topic issues and become something akin to those cheap and nasty 80′s PSAs about sharing and caring. Nobody wants to be symbolically slapped in the face with moralizing and hand-wringing. Especially when it’s stuff we all technically know.
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Speechless clearly addresses the issue of bullying, but first it addresses the issue of being a novel with a compelling cast of characters, a great story and a complicated moral playground – something infinitely more interesting.
Chelsea is a great character. She’s charismatic, interesting and is given lots of room to grow and change throughout the novel. But it’s her decision to go speechless, not speaking at all for the forseeable future, that really sets her apart and distinguishes her from being an ordinary teenage girl. Her gossiping and thoughtless ways land someone in the hospital and she faces a huge decision – face social pariah by turning in the culprits, or ignore her culpability and keep being a Teen Queen.
Chelsea ultimately chooses pariah and takes a vow of silence in the hopes that her big mouth won’t ever hurt another person the way it hurt Noah – but the fallout is harder and more difficult than even she imagined. Faced with finding a new way of life, new friends and a new Chelsea – Speechless shows her journey as she does all three.
Sam and Asha, Chelsea’s new and unlikely friends carry the story alongside Chelsea’s hilarious and incisive inner-monologuing and her many amusing attempts to communicate without using words. Sam and Chelsea’s burgeoning romance is made sweeter by the extra roadblocks to communication as he learns who she is by her actions and not her words.
This was seriously just a feel good book that occasionally had me feeling a little teary. Very well written, very thoughtful and full of lovely, endearing characters!...more
I make no secret of the fact that I love Moskowitz’s work with the power of a thousand Beiber fans except I don’t need to suspend my disbelief in MoskI make no secret of the fact that I love Moskowitz’s work with the power of a thousand Beiber fans except I don’t need to suspend my disbelief in Moskowitz’s ability.
Teeth is a heartbreaking novel about a lonely boy and an even lonelier magic fish boy. On an island there is a secret. The fish there are magic and they can keep you alive from even the most serious illness. Rudy moves there with his family for is brother’s sake, but things aren’t as simple as they seem when he meets Teeth.
As I’ve come to expect from Moskowitz, the writing is nothing short of spectacular and the characterization, Oh! The characterization! Here is a quote from my review of her book Gone, Gone, Gone about her characterization:
“Well and truly it is the intense characterization of Craig and Lio that make this novel. Clearly Moskowitz doesn’t just do characterization. She DOES characterization. You know. Like, when she writes a character – that character has been written. That character KNOWS it’s been written. That character will probably tell all it’s friends about that time it was written really well. Then it will compare all other writings to the writing that Moskowitz gave it. Thoroughly.”
That is as true in Teeth as it was in Gone, Gone, Gone. Teeth and Rudy are incredibly complex characters – amazingly flawed and dysfunctional. Lonely, desperate, passionate, broken and utterly charming.
But the themes in Teeth are significantly darker than they were in Gone, Gone, Gone, making me hesitant to recommend it to those unable to cope with issues of serious and repetitive sexual abuse. Teeth is dark. Teeth is very, very gothic and depressing and sad. Sometimes I wondered if it was too sad, too dark, too emotive. There’s very little cheer and fun to be had in it. But it turns out it’s just the right amount of dark, sad and emotive for me because I still loved it.
And if you love Moskowitz, it is likely that her ability to make you feel, to illicit a remarkable amount of empathy for her characters, to bare their soul to you – is one of the biggest attractions. That is what you consistently get with Moskowitz – so if you’re up for another beautifully written tale with a fresh bunch of characters waiting to make your heart bleed, then this is for you. If you’re in the mood for something that will make you laugh and feel good, then maybe you’re better off moving along.
And, people, when you do make it to the end of this book, just remember, I’m here for you.
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*An ARC was provided to me by the publisher. No gifts, favours or money was exchanged for this review.
When trying to find a way to describe this book – I settled on this: Pushing The Limits is the closest I’ve ever gotten to reading a Machetta bWhen trying to find a way to describe this book – I settled on this: Pushing The Limits is the closest I’ve ever gotten to reading a Machetta book.
For anyone familiar with me or Machetta – that is the highest praise I give.
Very rarely does a book make me laugh and cry at all – let alone multiple times. But that’s what this book did. And really, what the hell kind of badass reviewer am I when I’m brought to sniveling, snotty tears by a book?
Noah and Echo don’t talk at school. Noah is the atypical bad boy and Echo is the former Teen Queen on the verge of reclaiming her former glory. But Noah and Echo have a lot more in common than they realize. They’re both broken. This book is told through both of their view points as they start therapy and their lives start to unravel and they get pushed closer and closer together by their circumstances.
What I love is that there are three realities in this book. McGarry takes into account that there is Noah’s truth, Echo’s truth and then there’s this whole other creature we’ll call What Is Actually Happening. I haven’t seen someone show flawed narration this well in a long time. What McGarry captured perfectly is that disconnect while keeping me plugged in an sympathetic.
Example.
Noah is fighting for custody of his younger brothers. When his parents died, he and his siblings were separated. Noah was placed in a series of very bad and negligent homes while his brothers were placed with a custody family who restrict his access to his siblings and are trying to adopt them.
Echo’s father and his new wife (Echo’s old babysitter) have a very rocky, unhealthy relationship. He is controlling, the new wife is pregnant and Echo is desperate to try and make contact with her mother (who has been cut off from contact by Echo’s father).
At least – that is how it looks at the beginning. And it’s very easy to think that these adults in Echo and Noah’s lives are horrible. But whilst Echo and Noah continue to see them that way for awhile, and whilst I as the reader remained completely empathetic as to why Noah and Echo saw them that way, it becomes clear that the situation is not as cut and dry as that.
By the climax of both Echo and Noah’s stories I was weeping uncontrollably. I still cry when I think about those two parts of the book. McGarry’s writing is powerful, emotive. Her character voices for both Noah and Echo were very well done – reflecting on their distinct personalities and characteristics. The plot contained little action and was largely carried by the myriad of relationships and the mystery of Echo’s past – so fans of more fast paced, active novels may want to steer clear.
Mrs Collins, their therapist, plays an almost omnipotent, godlike character in the novel and brought a fresh, lovable addition. She was one of my favourites.
Over all, I think most readers are going to love this one. One of the absolute best books of 2012!...more
There was a reason that Melina Marchetta launched this book. I think I can safely put up a big sign over Pip Harry’s name that says, “Watch This SpThere was a reason that Melina Marchetta launched this book. I think I can safely put up a big sign over Pip Harry’s name that says, “Watch This Space.”
And because Pip Harry is Australian – instead of being lauded as brilliant and fantasmazeballs, she just gets put in that neat little category of Great Australian Writers like Melina Marchetta, Kirsty Eagar, Markus Zusak, Garth Nix, Shirley Marr, Lucy Christopher and Laura Buzo. I’m sure at least a couple of them aren’t really Australian but we have a tendency of just claiming people as our own – so just go with it.
This was the story of socially awkward Goth girl, Kate, dealing with being kicked out of home, relating to a bunch of boarders and rectifying her home situation whilst dealing with her own crushing insecurities.
It’s about being fifteen and stupid, and lucky, and angry, and confused and frustrated.
What really spoke to me was the brash reality of Kate’s life. Things aren’t just glossed over or purified through a decency filter for the reader. This isn’t about teens hanging out in designer clothes and playing baseball with their parents on a Sunday afternoon. This is about a girl who drinks, who wants to have sex, who has an uncontrollable temper and a difficult personality. And since Harry embraces that truth and rawness of narration, she’s able to induce strong emotional moments between the characters of the novel.
My biggest concern was on the Goth thing. I was concerned that the book would be full of bad poetry and musings about the futileness of happiness. And in the interest of full disclosure, everything I learned about Goths came from Southpark.
[image] It's where I learn most things, to be honest.
But it turns out, like with most things, the label is just a window dressing for an otherwise normal girl dealing with otherwise normal teenage things. She just happens to be Goth while she’s doing it. And even though I still don’t know what that means, I learned a very valuable lesson… don’t piss off Goth people or your intestines will become their floss! Okay, maybe not the lesson you’re supposed to learn, but, whatever.
I enjoyed Pip Harry’s style of narration and the book flows well for the first three quarters. Right up until the last quarter I would have said it was a five star novel. In the last quarter, the narration really slips into denouement mode and becomes very telling and to be honest, both myself and the story weren’t quite ready for that. It’s like when you’re still colouring and your parent/teacher comes along and starts asking you to pack up and you’re like, “Hold it! I’m still going here! THE FOOT ISN’T FINISHED!”
There was still some story left to go but the edge had gone from the novel because we were in the nice, comforting wrap-up phase of storytelling.
If you’re a fan of Aussie novels, Melina Marchetta, heart-warming tales or good times, then I highly suggest you give this one a go.
Look, it doesn’t really matter what star rating I’d have given this book. Because, at the end of the day, nothing would have been able to take awayLook, it doesn’t really matter what star rating I’d have given this book. Because, at the end of the day, nothing would have been able to take away from how unflappably cool Hannah Moskowitz is. She’s like the genius rockstar of the YA world.
So I guess it’s just a good thing that I completely, truly and irrevocably (I feel Twilight has ruined this word forever) loved this book.
For a book that doesn’t have a giant, action packed plot or complicated message, Gone, Gone, Gone manages to be brilliant in the most understated, replete fashion.
It’s language is simplistic, I’d even go so far as to say MUNDANE, but it’s packed to the brim and even the most inane parts are interesting.
“I’m not an enigma. I’m just talked out, probably permanently. I said all I needed to say when I was a boy made of sticks and radiation and half-digested oatmeal. I don’t feel good. I want to go home. Make it stop. It’s been seven years, and I’m still out of words.”
Well and truly it is the intense characterization of Craig and Lio that make this novel. Clearly Moskowitz doesn’t just do characterization. She DOES characterization. You know. Like, when she writes a character – that character has been written. That character KNOWS it's been written. That character will probably tell all it's friends about that time it was written really well. Then it will compare all other writings to the writing that Moskowitz gave it. Thoroughly.
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I mean, if Craig and Lio had any more personality, oddities and complexities then her characters might just come alive and start trying to murder their creators and Moskowitz would have to hide her status from them forever like that guy in The Solitaire Mystery. Actually, just for good measure, don’t ever get stranded on an island Moskowitz. Especially not a magical island that brings your day dreams to life because then you’re probably screwed.
It’s going to be hard to sell this book. Usually you latch onto something easy like describing a book as being The Hunger Games meets Madame Bovary or some other such nonsense. But it’s a little hard to do that. I could go the easy route and tell you it’s Awesomness meets your mind, or fabulous meets the written word. But that doesn’t really translate well into what this book is about.
But this book is about a lot of things. Mostly it’s about two boys who fall in love while dealing with themselves. Mostly it’s about healing and growing and loving.
Mostly it’s about me kicking your ass if you don’t add it to your TBR list, alright?
[image] There are just a thousand and one uses for this pic!
This is the good thing about Goodreads. When you start reading, the mediocre fare doesn't seem so bad, maybe even enjoyable. But after reading your huThis is the good thing about Goodreads. When you start reading, the mediocre fare doesn't seem so bad, maybe even enjoyable. But after reading your hundredth YA paranormal romance with Mary Sue, Miss Goody-two-shoes, virginal blob, it starts to leave a sour taste in your mouth and a dissatisfying sickness in your gut.
But on Goodreads, you get to learn about books like this. Books you might never have discovered if a friend hadn't reviewed it or someone hadn't recommended it to you.
After all those same books with the same themes and same stories and same characters, I started looking for different books. Amazing books with excellent writing and brilliant execution. Books that shine or burn or blaze their way through your mind. That's what this book was for me.
Marr's writing is raw and spartan, but her imagery is complex and her characters are deeply flawed, interesting and vivid.
Eliza Boans, sixteen year old rich brat and school socialite is in for murder. Why? From the very first page Eliza flashes you her bratty, shallow, vicious personality - daring you to contradict her. But the tale that unfolds shows a different person. She is often unlikeable but never unreadable and this is the distinction that so many authors miss out on.
The tale is gripping, pulled through by the beautiful tapestry of characters and relationships and mystery that surrounds Eliza's fall from grace.
My favourite thing about this book is Marr's ability to translate Eliza's emotions and personality to the reader. She's able to help the reader feel Eliza's rage, her frustration, her loneliness and helplessness.
Also, you get TOTAL hipster points from reading this book - great for trolling.
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*Also, we have an interview with Marr and a giveaway for this book and her new release, Preloved up on our blog....more
There has been a great discussion in the comments about pulled Fanfictions and whether they are morally reprehensible for their past or should be judgThere has been a great discussion in the comments about pulled Fanfictions and whether they are morally reprehensible for their past or should be judged based on their quality and degree of separation from their source material. Unfortunately this book fails both tests. Yes, it is a reworked fanfiction. I was willing to maybe put that aside if it was good because I remember the relationship dynamic and characters being very different from the source material and, indeed, being very different from any book I'd ever read.
That part is still true - but I'm saved from having a moral dilemma over whether to give this book a high rating or not - because this is not a good book.
I could rattle off the usual. The characters are two dimensional and unconvincing, the plot is a haphazard hodgepodge of nonsense and the writing is mediocre. The exboyfriend was mustache-twirling ridiculous, the three brothers lacked a realistic bond or even respectable backstory. The main female protagonist was laughably incomplete as a character and still managed to be scarily dependent on her boyfriend despite the fact that he was both homeless and mentally-ill.
All of this would usually still leave you with somewhat of an okay story. Readable but nothing spectacular. Unfortunately, the novel's history caught up with it in the least expected the way.
You see, Fanfiction and novels appear on the outside to be similar mediums. Both narratives that span similar lengths from novellas to sprawling epics. Yet, it's in their conception and delivery that makes them markedly different.
A novel is written, edited and then published for public consumption. This hopefully means that the story has been smoothed out and any plotting problems sorted. The consumers receive the book whole and can read it in one sitting. The author then has the luxury of evenly spacing the story arc and gives the book balance.
Fanfictions, are written and published (or updated in the fanfiction world) chapter by chapter. Sometimes the author has a plot worked out but often not. Updating sometimes happens as often as weekly or can stretch out to be several months between updates. As such, readers follow many stories at once and thus the skills of a successful fanfic deviate heavily from a successful novel.
For starters - relationships can not take an entire book to develop. After some general polling a couple of years ago, fanficers reported that they would abandon a story should the main characters not "unite" within 9-11 chapters (considering many fanfics have 30+ chapters, this is a rather short amount of time). Then it's a matter of dragging the story along for awhile until people start to get bored. In the last five chapters or so, fanfiction authors tend to shit out a resolution, wash their hands of it and move on.
This is exactly what happens in Poughkeepsie. The couples mostly resolve their issues and are happily together. There is a visible moment in the story when the author shits herself, realizes she needs a tidy way to resolve the plot and then sets about creating a ridiculous ending.
What I had hoped was that this novel, when pulled, would be seriously - and with great consideration - edited into a respectable piece. In this I was disappointed. I can't see anything new or different from the Fanfic. I would go through my version to see if the author has done anything more than find and replace the names, but I can't be bothered.
The chance I had been willing to give this novel is now squandered. I guess now we'll never be able to know what brilliant argument I would have come up with to justify the morality in its publishing. Which is a shame. I love arguing.
Kat Kennedy
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