Tag: Book Review

Last year I read one of the books I was most excited to pick up. A story told differently. Illuminae by Amy Kaufman and Jay Kristoff immediately went to my wish list once I discovered it was told through a collection of files, transcripts, emails, etc. And for some reason, I never got to review it. Fast forward to 2022, I finally bought Gemina, the second book in The Illuminae Files. But before I jump into it, first, I need to go back to the beginning, to where it all started. Illuminae Pages: 599 Genre: Sci-fi Publication: 2015 Goodreads | The Storygraph Synopsis: This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do. This afternoon, her planet was invaded. The year is 2575, and two rival mega-corporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than a speck at the edge of the …

The Hunger Games. A series that doesn’t need any introduction. Some people read the books, others watched the movies, and many did both. I did none. I was aware of the basic story behind The Hunger Games: a bunch of kids put inside an arena to fight until death. Although I never wanted to watch any of the movies, I don’t know why, but I never did. Fast forward a few years, and here I am, a die-hard fan of Divergent and the dystopian genre. I knew it was a matter of time until I had to read The Hunger Games trilogy. There was no denying how important this series was for the genre, and it was (still is) so beloved. I had to read it. And this year, I finally archive that goal. Attention! The following review contains spoilers for all three books in The Hunger Games series. You …

The best time of the year has come once again. The air is getting colder, and the days are shorter. The prime cosy time is upon us, and nothing like a chilling and dark mystery to rock you back to sleep. There is something delicious about reading murder mysteries and creepy stories in autumn. Maybe it’s the change to darker days or the association with Halloween. Either way, reading is always better when it’s colder outside and nothing like picking up a Ruth Ware to make the most out of it. Author: Ruth Ware Pages: 338 Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Drama, Horror First Publication: July 2015 Synopsis Nora hasn’t seen Clare for ten years. Not since the day Nora walked out of her old life and never looked back. Until, out of the blue, an invitation to Clare’s hen party arrives. A weekend in a remote cottage – the perfect opportunity …

And Then There Were None is not the first Agatha Christie book I read. Although it is the first one I completely fell in love with. It can be tricky to read her books. They were written a very long time ago, and she often uses references to the 30s lifestyle that is foreign to me. While reading it in a different century, some details can go over my head and doom the book as boring. At least, this has been my experience when reading Agatha Christie. But then, I picked up And Then There Were None. One of her standalone mystery novels. A story with multiple adaptations from movies, to mini-series, to a two-part episode of Family Guy. And I know I’ve seen a few more with different characters while maintaining the same plot, although, for the life of me, I can’t remember where. This is one of her …

Happy April Fools’ Day!! Despite today being a day you can’t trust anything people say, trust me, I’ll not be pulling any pranks on you. *wink* *wink* Now that I’ve taken all the jokes out of my system – probably not! – time to focus on the book I bring to you today: Edokko by Loren Greene. This is the second full-length novel in the Sakura+Maple series that brings Japan and Canada together. The story is a stand-alone, so don’t worry if you haven’t read anything else. So grab your passport, and let’s go to Japan! Author: Loren Greene Pages: 332 Genre: Contemporary YA Publication: 2021 Synopsis: Lily Jennings is Going. To. Japan. Sixteen and on top of the world, Lily’s BEYOND excited to be setting off for an entire year as an exchange student in Tokyo. Fashion and fun are foremost on her mind as she arrives ready to …

The start of a new year means new books. Although I can’t begin reviewing the books I already read in 2022 without closing the chapter of the ones I read last year. And Capsule by Mel Torrefranca is one of the reasons for that. It came out last summer, and I was fortunate to read an eARC of it. So prepare yourself for a deadly phone game! Author: Mel Torrefranca Pages: 255 Genre: YA, Sci-Fi, Mystery Publication: July 2021 Synopsis: Two students from Brookwood High School mysteriously go missing on the same night. The first is Peter Moon, a heartless pescatarian who bashes students from Brookwood on his blog, turning everyone against him. The second is the adored Kat Pike, an audacious girl desperate to boost her adrenaline. Three days pass. No leads. Indifferent to the disappearances, sixteen-year-old Jackie Mendoza remains immersed in her virtual world of video games and …

As the name suggests, this book has everything to be a terrifying read during the time we are living in. Although it’s not. Despite the name, Contagion by Teri Terry has little to no similarities to real life – and I’m glad it doesn’t, or the author can predict the future! This piece of light fantasy is highly addictive and has infected me to read the rest of the series – now I see where the name comes from! Author: Teri Terry Pages: 480 Genre: Fantasy, YA, Mystery, Apocalyptic Publication: 2017 Synopsis: Callie is missing. Her brother Kai is losing hope of ever seeing her again. Then he meets Shay, a girl who saw Callie the day she disappeared, and his hope is reignited. Their search leads them to the heart of a terrifying epidemic that is raging through the country. Can Kai and Shay escape death and find Callie? …

Grab a tissue box because You’ve Reached Sam by Dustin Thao will leave you crying like a baby. This YA contemporary story deals with grieving the loss of a loved one. Completely character-driven, the author takes you through a journey of loss, reconnection, friendship, and letting go. Prepare yourself because there won’t be many times to smile. Author: Dustin Thao Pages: 304 Genre: YA, Contemporary, Fantasy Publication: 9th November 2021 Synopsis: How do you move forward when everything you love is on the line? Seventeen-year-old Julie has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city, spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes. Desperate to hear his voice one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cellphone just to listen to his voicemail. And Sam picks up the phone. What would you do if you had a …

I’m sure you have heard of The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn. This book took 2018 by storm. Everywhere I looked, there it was staring at me, judging me for not buying it. You should have seen it. The cold glares, the look of despite, it knew I wanted to read it, but I was denying myself that pleasure. Then one day, I opened the first page. Author: A. J. Finn Pages: 429 Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Suspense Publication: 2018 Synopsis: Anna Fox lives alone, a recluse in her New York City home, unable to venture outside. She spends her day drinking wine (maybe too much), watching old movies, recalling happier times . . . and spying on her neighbours. Then the Russells move into the house across the way: a father, a mother and their teenage son. The perfect family. But when Anna, gazing out her …

Reading the entire book series that inspired what once was one of my favourite TV shows of all time was something I wanted to do for a long time. Ever since I discovered that The 100 was based on a book series with the same name, I wanted to spend more time in this virgin version of Earth. I’ve talked about what I enjoyed the most and disliked about the TV show, and now, after almost 3 years, I’ve read the entire book series. I wrote a review for the first book in the series – you can find it here. But since all the others would contain big spoilers, I thought it was better to review the series as a whole. If you want to know all my thought on each of the books, you can find them on Goodreads. Author: Kass Morgan Genre: YA, Sci-fi, Dystopia, Post-Apocalyptic Publication: …

Reading Dry by Neal and Jarrod Shusterman on a hot summery day might cause severe dehydration and overheat. Read it at your own risk! But read it. As someone who enjoys post-apocalyptic stories like cotton candy, I knew I had to read this book. And I was not disappointed. So if the premise speaks to you, do yourself a favour and take the risk of making your summer even drier. Author: Neal Shusterman, Jarrod Shusterman Pages: 390 Genre: YA, Survival, Dystopian Publication: 2018 Synopsis: When the California drought escalates to catastrophic proportions, one teen is forced to make life and death decisions for her family in this harrowing story of survival. The drought – or the Tap-Out, as everyone calls it – has been going on for a while now. Everyone’s lives have become an endless list of don’ts: don’t water the lawn, don’t fill up your pool, don’t take …