Well, I meant to get the print version from the library, but apparently I accidentally requested the audiobook version instead. Which was disappointinWell, I meant to get the print version from the library, but apparently I accidentally requested the audiobook version instead. Which was disappointing, but I figured, what the hey? I'll give it a try.
And I did, for about five minutes, and by that time the narrator was already putting me to sleep. He kind of speaks in a monotone, and he pauses too often and for too long. I couldn't do it.
Now, admittedly, I am EXTREMELY picky about audiobooks. I dislike the narration for about 90% of the ones I try. So I wasn't all that surprised not to enjoy this one either. But, you know. I hoped.
Anyway, back to the library with it, and I will be more careful to request the proper item this time! I'm sure I'll enjoy the print version, when I finally get it, far more than I did this thing. Boo.
P.S. This crappy review is for the AUDIO version only, just in case that wasn't clear. Nothing at all against Rick Yancey, who I'm sure is lovely. It's just really bad narration, which is totally not his fault, and has nothing at all to do with what he's written. Or so I assume....more
Oh, man. Another one I'm not going to finish. But hey, at least it was free!
So, the premise didn't sound bad: some kids have superpowers, here called Oh, man. Another one I'm not going to finish. But hey, at least it was free!
So, the premise didn't sound bad: some kids have superpowers, here called "talents," and the govenment wants to catch them and lock them all up in scary lab testy schools for the safety of others. It didn't sound particularly original, but it didn't sound bad. I had a LOT of problems with it though, the main one being that the two main characters, Joss and Dylan are really UNLIKABLE. They both do awful things or let awful things happen, and their reasons seem really shaky to me. I don't find either of them even remotely sympathtic. The other characters feel flat and stereotyped, and so much just feels over the top--the dialogue, characters' reactions to things, their motivations...none of it feels realistic to me. However, in addition to those major issues, I feel that the world is not set up well at all. Why do so many kids (practically everyone Joss and Dylan know) have talents? Is it like this everywhere, or is their town special? Do adults have any powers? Where did these powers come from? None of this is explained, at least in the first half of the book. And then Joss goes on and on about how terrible the state schools are, but it's all very vague and based on things that Joss heard as a child. It's just not convincing. And while Bischoff may very well answer some of these questions later in the book, at the half-way point, I just can no longer force myself to care. There's nothing holding me to this story at all, so I'm walking away from it. Lots of folks seem to have really enjoyed this one, so maybe it's just me, but...I'm done....more
Yeah, I'm done with this one. While I was interested in finally getting to the vampire aspects of the story, I found the main character extremely stupYeah, I'm done with this one. While I was interested in finally getting to the vampire aspects of the story, I found the main character extremely stupid and ridiculous, and all her interactions with guys were kind of excruciating. I just found myself getting more and more frustrated with the choices that what's-her-name kept making--the last straw being that (view spoiler)[despite her fear of hospitals due to all the pain and suffering she feels with her empathic abilities, when she finds a classmate mauled in the woods, unconscious and having lost a lot of blood, instead of calling 911 like any normal person would do, with the fully charged cell phone it's already been established that she has, she decides it's a better idea to DRAG him to her car, somehow wrestle him into it, and drive him there herself. And then she whines a bunch about the pain and suffering. And no mention is made of blood in her car and no adult ever tells her that what she did was maybe not the best choice. It all felt like a weak excuse on the writer's part to get her into the hospital just so we could see how terrible her empathic powers are in that situation. Bah! (hide spoiler)]--and also with the things that the author had clearly just...not thought through, like (view spoiler)[the main character waking up screaming from nightmares at 2:00 a.m. two nights in a row, seemingly without her dad or her brother noticing a thing, or, heck! Let's go ahead and include the above mentioned empathic powers in there, because there didn't really seem to even be a point to her having them. (hide spoiler)]. There are also a few too many grammar and punctuation issues for my comfort. No, this is not the worst thing ever written, and if you can look past the terminally dumb main character and the not quite fully-formed plot, you might enjoy it. A lot of folks have. But I'm giving it up at the halfway mark. I just don't have the patience....more
Eh. The idea was pretty cute, but I found the writing really immature, and I quickly grew very, very bored with it. I mean, it's a short book, but I sEh. The idea was pretty cute, but I found the writing really immature, and I quickly grew very, very bored with it. I mean, it's a short book, but I still couldn't force myself to push through it. Even halfway through, I just had never managed to connect with any of the characters at all. My one-star rating is not because it's a terrible book; it's really not. It just isn't for me. I'm abandoning this one....more
I think the premise for this book is really interesting, but...more than a third of the way through it, and I still find that I am just FORCING myselfI think the premise for this book is really interesting, but...more than a third of the way through it, and I still find that I am just FORCING myself to keep reading. I tend to like character-driven books much more than I do plot-driven books, and this one definitely feels more plot-driven to me; I just can't connect with any of the characters at ALL. I think the writing is good, and I want to like it, but...I think I'm done....more
Part of me hates to give this only one star because it's not like it's terribly written, but the fact is I couldn't even get past the first 50 pages oPart of me hates to give this only one star because it's not like it's terribly written, but the fact is I couldn't even get past the first 50 pages or so because I disliked the set-up so much. I just couldn't believe in any of it--it all felt like the sort of braggy, exaggerated, fantasy versions of things that someone who is desperately trying appear cooler than they think they actually are will come out with. It was all just too much--the rock star dad, the genius mother, the 900 album vinyl collection of a ten-or-twelve-or-however-many-years-old-she-supposedly-was-at-the-time kid, the jaded yet hopeful attitude, the job at the age of 14, the spiky hair, the Blondie tee shirt, the perfect version of a Tchaikovsy symphony... I just didn't buy any of it. And then there was the stereotypically snobby record store clerk behavior and the constant ranting about corporate America on top of that. It just felt like there was too much message and too many details and too much that was too over-the-top getting in the way of whatever story it is that Prinz is trying to tell here. It all just came across as flat and obnoxious and fake to me. Beh. Not interested....more
I'm actually going to give up on this one for now, though I might possibly pick it back up and give it another try at some point. I like theEh........
I'm actually going to give up on this one for now, though I might possibly pick it back up and give it another try at some point. I like the idea behind it, but I'm having a lot of trouble with the way Lynch jumps back and forth in time. I find I'm really interested in the parts that take place when Locke was a somewhat naive but frighteningly adept child thief and not at ALL interested in the caper that's taking place when he's an adult and the leader of the Gentleman Bastards. I think Lynch is probably saving the reason for this heist and others for later in the book, and maybe Locke's character will make more sense at that point, but as it is, he doesn't even feel like the same person to me, and I just can't seem to get attached to the adult version at all. I mostly just feel frustrated with this instead of entertained, so I'm going to go ahead and let myself off the hook, since I've made it 150 pages in and still don't feel compelled to find out what's really going on.
I'm giving it two stars instead of one though, because I have a feeling I may just not be in the mood for it, and I also have a feeling that if I do at some point manage to push through it, I'll actually really enjoy it a second time through. Still, that's not the way I like to read books, you know? It's just nice to have a little more of a payoff up front. ...more
Couldn't finish this. Could barely even start this. I was bored out of my mind by page ten. I pushed myself to read until page 50 or so, but at that pCouldn't finish this. Could barely even start this. I was bored out of my mind by page ten. I pushed myself to read until page 50 or so, but at that point I still hadn't come across anything that made me care even a little, so I gave up. I think the world is probably really interesting, but Bacigalupi spends so much time describing unimportant details and hardly spends any time at all making the characters feel real and relatable. There just wasn't anything I could really connect to here. At all....more
I tried, but...I'm done with this one for now. I'm just really not into it. I don't feel like it's terrible, but there are several things that have haI tried, but...I'm done with this one for now. I'm just really not into it. I don't feel like it's terrible, but there are several things that have happened (view spoiler)[The whole sex thing between Devin and Catriana? So weird and awkward and unbelievable to me, and I didn't like how it was handled after the fact. That all just felt false. And then Devin's reaction to hearing the name of his country? Also a little...too much. (hide spoiler)] that have just totally dropped me out of the story, and I can't stay focused. I don't really like any of the characters so far, except for one who already got killed off. So I'm just going to move on. Perhaps I'll give it another try at some point, as it's possible that I'm just not in the mood for it, but for now? Meh....more
**spoiler alert** OMG, nope. Can't do it. I was interested in the mystery of the missing Harriet Vanger at first, and even somewhat in the idea of how**spoiler alert** OMG, nope. Can't do it. I was interested in the mystery of the missing Harriet Vanger at first, and even somewhat in the idea of how Mikael Blomkvist could prove that he was right about Wennerström and his dirty business dealings after all. I had absolutely no interest in Lisbeth Salander from the start, but I figured the other two mysteries would be enough to keep me going.
Only then we get into the long, overly-detailed Vanger family history. And then there's all the ridiculous technical specs of Salander's stupid computers and lectures on the legal guardian stuff. And the very graphically violent rapes. And at this point (almost halfway through), I can't even remotely understand how the Blomkvist and Salander storylines even relate to each other at all, other than Salander is briefly supposed to be investigating Blomkvist, but is almost immediately told, wait, never mind. Maybe that all makes sense in the end, I don't know.
In any case, I was already thoroughly bored with the book by the time the rape stuff happens, and that pretty much made up my mind to just go ahead and stop reading. I might have managed to deal with it if I had actually cared about the character, but as I did not even a little bit? Nope. I will admit that part of me wants to know what happened to Harriet, though I certainly don't think she's dead, and I already have a pretty good idea of why she might have left and who was most likely involved (though I could be wrong). But in the end, I just don't really care enough or think the answer will be surprising enough to keep on going with this thing. I'm done. Scold me if you must....more
Several of my friends have really enjoyed this one, so I really expected that I would too! But...I honestly couldn't even get going on it. The first tSeveral of my friends have really enjoyed this one, so I really expected that I would too! But...I honestly couldn't even get going on it. The first time I picked it up, I made it to page 10 and then put it down, figuring maybe I just wasn't in the mood for it. I picked it up again a few books later and did the exact same thing. And then a third time, and it happened yet again (only this time I actually made it to page 55). I'm not sure why, but I just can't seem to connect to anything enough to get interested in the story. Partly it might be that I tend to be suspicious of books with male protagonists. For some reason I always just assume that I won't be able to relate. But oftentimes, writers are very quickly able to make me like their male main characters despite my ridiculous assumptions. Brennan just didn't manage it--at least not in the first 50 pages or so (though I will also admit that the cover really puts me off...the giant-lipped broody-faced fellow is just not appealing in the least, and that might have made me a bit more wary). I don't know. It's not like I thought this was BAD, it's just...I couldn't get interested. I hear it's a lot like the tv show Supernatural, which many of my friends also really enjoy, but which I...really only like okay. So maybe it's just the brotherly dynamic that doesn't grab me?
I might give this another try at some point, because I kinda feel like I must just be missing something. But for now I'm giving up. Sorry... :(...more
I didn't get it. I made it through the first 120 pages but still had no idea what was going on or why anything was happening and I still didn't have aI didn't get it. I made it through the first 120 pages but still had no idea what was going on or why anything was happening and I still didn't have any real understanding of who the characters were. None of it made sense to me. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, just seemed extremely underdeveloped. A lot of people really liked this, so I might be missing something, but...meh. I think I'm just done....more
This was my first time reading an Elizabeth Scott novel, and it will probably be my last. The plot sounded over-the-top ridiculous before I even pickeThis was my first time reading an Elizabeth Scott novel, and it will probably be my last. The plot sounded over-the-top ridiculous before I even picked it up, but there are so many good reviews of it on here that I figured I'd give it a chance. But this thing is a mess. Everything just seems so contrived! What really gets me is the dialogue...I take it a lot of it is meant to be witty banter, especially between Hannah and Finn, but it all feels fake--awkward and slightly off somehow, with lots of poor grammar, and it does nothing but make me dislike them both. And all Finn's blushing gets old really fast. Nothing really feels believable enough to allow me to connect with the plot or characters at all. Sorry, but no...it's too painful to finish....more
I normally love dystopian teen fic. And the premise of this one sounded fairly interesting. I just assumed I would really enjoy it. But right off the I normally love dystopian teen fic. And the premise of this one sounded fairly interesting. I just assumed I would really enjoy it. But right off the bat I was annoyed by the beginning--a nine-page-long diary entry. Such a lazy (and boring) way to give background information! I mean, diary entries CAN be done well, and written in a believable way. The ones in this book are not. A lot of times it's a case of telling instead of showing, which always makes events feel flat and not quite believable. Other times, the journal entries repeat things that just happened in the story, only with the main character giving her (very immature) opinions on things as well ("stupid" seems to be one of her favorite words). The diary entries really irritated me.
But they aren't the only parts I found frustrating about this book. The characters don't feel real at ALL to me--a sterotypical evil headmistress, a naive, brainwashed girl who is suddenly UN-brainwashed without any real conflict of conscience after overhearing ONE conversation, a traditional mean girl/bully type, a heroic, overly patient boy who has all the answers...blergh. None of them have any depth whatsoever. On top of that, the overcapitalization!
The entire thing just feels really immature and unoriginal to me. I'm quitting to read something more compelling. ...more
18 Pages in and I was already bored and irritated with this. Page 83 and it hasn't gotten even the slightest bit more interesting or less annoying. It18 Pages in and I was already bored and irritated with this. Page 83 and it hasn't gotten even the slightest bit more interesting or less annoying. It's written in third person and present tense, which is...offputting somehow, and none of the characters seem even remotely likable to me. And I get the idea this is supposed to be really creepy, but it's not. At all. The premise just seems...dumb so far. I'm giving up, and I highly doubt I'll give anything else of Joyce's a try....more
Yeah, I didn't finish this one; there are much better books available on the subject. Cantor didn't really tell me anything new or in any sort of an iYeah, I didn't finish this one; there are much better books available on the subject. Cantor didn't really tell me anything new or in any sort of an interesting way. And the narrator of the audiobook version I was listening to had this annoying habit of whispering everything, like it was all a big secret. Beh....more
I'm giving up on this one. It's not BAD, just...excruciatingly BORING. To me, anyway. I found the main character obnoxious and all the other characterI'm giving up on this one. It's not BAD, just...excruciatingly BORING. To me, anyway. I found the main character obnoxious and all the other characters underdeveloped and uninteresting, and over half way through the book, nothing's really happened--they've started their journey, and then traveled, and traveled, and traveled, and traveled, and traveled, and...you get the picture. I've heard really good things about this series, and maybe at some point in the future I'll give it another try. But I have too many other books that look far more exciting than this one has been, so I'm moving on to one of them....more
This is one that I'm not going to finish. It's not BAD--it's actually quite well written in a way--but 100+ pages in and I still didn't care about anyThis is one that I'm not going to finish. It's not BAD--it's actually quite well written in a way--but 100+ pages in and I still didn't care about any of the characters and I felt like I was having to just FORCE my way through it. So many people have given it such great reviews, and so part of me wants to continue in hopes that something changes somewhere along the line, but the thing is...I love books when I love the characters, and in this one? I really don't. They all seem very one-dimentional and bland, and I feel the book suffers for having five main characters instead of only one or two. I just never felt attached to any of them, and I guess I don't have the patience to stick with it in hopes that at some point one or more of them will finally become a little more sympathetic. I may just not be in the mood for a story that I have to work so hard for right now, and maybe I'll give it another try one day.
Ah, crap! This book is an even more gihugic waste of time than the first one. And ohmygoodness, Loren makes me want to throw up in my yummy bowl of ViAh, crap! This book is an even more gihugic waste of time than the first one. And ohmygoodness, Loren makes me want to throw up in my yummy bowl of Vietnamese noodle salad called Bun Cha Gio. Zoey and her super irritating "twin" friends too--hags! Jeesh...
Nope. I can't do it. The writing in this book is just too terrible for me to continue. I thought I was interested enough in the story to plow through it, but clearly I was mistaken. The constant bad dialogue, the unnecessary adjectives and explanations, the sloppy changes in tense, the immature vocabulary, the practically nonexistent character development...really, this thing is a nightmare. Which is a pity, because I think the Casts have some interesting ideas going here, but it's just far too poorly executed for me to bother with any longer.
I got this from a clearance bin at Half Price Books at some point. I had no idea what it was about, but I'm interested in Australia so I figured I'd gI got this from a clearance bin at Half Price Books at some point. I had no idea what it was about, but I'm interested in Australia so I figured I'd give it a shot. But it is TERRIBLY written--I really hated the author's voice and delivery. I mean, I really wanted to smack her. I couldn't finish it....more
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