Wishlist Wednesday

Hey there! Yup, it actually is me. The Booksmartie. Haven't heard from me in a while, have ya? Oh, well. Let's just say school is keeping me busier than ever right now and I really need to focus on that! The good thing is, though, that I'm done with actually going to school in 1 1/2 weeks - crazy, right? Until then, i probably wont be reading (or blogging) all too much, but I hope you guys wait for me - I promise its going to be better days from now :)
Okay, on to the purpose of this post -  a book I'm wishing to see on my shelf soon...mhm...let me think. I know I chose this one before, but I pre-ordered it and it has not come until now!!! So annoying! But here it is:

If you haven't read the first book, Partials, i highly recommend you do - I loved it!

Review: Speechless by Hannah Harrington

Speechless

by Hannah Harrington

 

 

Everyone knows that Chelsea Knot can't keep a secret
Until now. Because the last secret she shared turned her into a social outcast—and nearly got someone killed.
Now Chelsea has taken a vow of silence—to learn to keep her mouth shut, and to stop hurting anyone else. And if she thinks keeping secrets is hard, not speaking up when she's ignored, ridiculed and even attacked is worse.
But there's strength in silence, and in the new friends who are, shockingly, coming her way—people she never noticed before; a boy she might even fall for. If only her new friends can forgive what she's done. If only she can forgive herself.

 

Paperback, 288 pages

Published August 28th 2012 by HarlequinTeen

 

A Long Story Short

 

Speechless was a good, but not great contemporary book that I'd recommend to everyone who does not expect extraordinary things from the Story. I read this book, influenced by all the Hype around Hannah Harrington and this novel in General, I expected a great message, an even better romance - and all I got was average. I understand that the characters are fleshed out and that they really have chemistry, but I don't understand why I'm supposed to be completely blown away by the Story.

 

RATING:

2/3 Smarties

 

Review for you:

I hate These kinds of Reviews. I can't rant because it wasn't horrible, I can't rave, because I didn't even come Close to being obsessed with it.

What I liked? The characters. No matter which one, really. They were all authentic, most of them like-and lovable, the Boys respectful, the Girls strong and confident. I mean, it does say something if the only Thing you get from the Heroine are her inner thoughts and throughout the whole book you don't ever find her whiny or annoying in some way, not redundant, either.

Also, I won't spoil anything but there's something about the atmosphere around a workplace where People are cooking, that....just Appeals to me. If anyone of you has read Sarah Dessen's The Truth About Forever, or What Happened to Goodbye you know what I mean. It's just...ha, the atmosphere!

Anyway, the actual plot...dragged a Little bit towards the end. I felt like the ending should have come sooner. It's true that there were still some final endings to tie together, but I was not up for it anymore. Do you know that Feeling when you know there are still a few things in the plot that have to happen before the book is over, but you don't want to read them anymore, because you know how they'll turn out and you are satisfied with the Story as it is? Yeah, that. If I remember correctly it took me about three evenings to read the last 10% of the novel on my Kindle.

So, okay, you might be thinking right now. You found the ending a bit dragging and that's why you didn't like the entire book? Mhm...not quite.

My main Problem was the Hype. I expected a miracle. That sort of Story that makes you love and cry and that you remember forever and that teaches you important lessons for your life and everything after you die and...you know where I'm coming from, don't you?

Speechless was cute, maybe even good but by no means - in my opinion - was it a brilliant novel every single Person on this planet should read. Especially the actual premise, the speechlessness, came too short for me. I thought it'd be such a great deal, but it wasn't. Not really.

I think I've said it enough - I'm disappointed, but I guess without the expectations - or with more negative ones in my head - I would have enjoyed this novel!

Feature & Follow Friday

Today's Question:

What is a book you didn’t like that all your friends raved about or what book did you love that wasn’t popular?

Easy one. Everyone i know (blogger or not) loved Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins. Me? I hated it with a passion. still do, actually :D What about you guys? Did you like that book? Which books did you like that weren't popular? Because I'd really like to read them!

Review: Zoe Letting Go by Nora Price

A girl's letters to her best friend reveal two lives derailed by anorexia in this haunting debut that's Wintergirls meets The Sixth Sense
It's not a hospital, a spa, or an institution. That's what they told me--that's what the brochures promised.
But no matter what the brochures promised, Zoe finds that Twin Birch is a place for girls with a penchant for harming themselves. Through journal entries and letters to her best friend, Elise, she tries to understand why she was brought there, and how she could possibly belong in a place like this. But Zoe's letters to Elise remain unanswered. She wonders why her best friend would cut her off without a word, reliving memory after memory of their beautiful, rocky, inescapable friendship. But everyone has secrets--including Zoe--and as her own fragile mental state hangs in the balance, she must finally learn to come to terms with what happened to Elise before she's able to let go.

A Long Story...Short!

Although this book is kind of an addicting story, I don't think it'd make the top list in this genre. The story was good, the writing admirable, the heroine sympathetic and I was close to tears a couple of times, but the rather open ending and the unanswered questions throughout the book made it an overall unsatisfying read.

RATING: 2/ 3 Smarties

Review for You:

So, I guess you have to love this book for Wintergirls reasons. If you have read any other book on eating disorders, self-harm, depression or other horrible diseases that can ruin a person's life you know what I mean. The characters in those books are usually so far down, so desperate, that you can't help but feel for them and want them to be in a better place again and that's why you keep turning the pages.
That should not be the only reason, though. I think especially with books that are hard to put down for the aforementioned reasons, it's important to shine in other areas, as well.
Writing, for example. Which was great for most of the time in Zoe Letting Go. The story is told from Zoe's point of view and the heroine has a unique voice and way of thinking - I think that was impressive, also considering the fact that it's the author's first book.
The plot was pretty much perfect, too. The balance between present day and flashbacks was there at all times which held my interest. The letters to Elise were - in my opinion - a bit too many and a bit too long, but I'm not a fan of that kind of style, anyway - interrupting the story with letters that basically just recall what just happened in the last chapter.
As  I was reading , I was convinced that this would be a three Smartie review very easily - but that was when I still thought I would get an actual ending and answers to all of my questions.
I think it's okay, especially with contemporary stories like this to not explain every detail of how things will go on in the characters' lives. However, Price left so many aspects simply untalked about and up to the reader's imagination that it annoyed me - a lot, actually.
All in all, I would still recommend the book but warn you of an unsatisfying ending that I find pretty much unacceptable.

Wishlist Wednesday

What I wish for this Wednesday? Hehe, absolutely nothing! This past weekend, when I found myself drowning in schoolwork, barely keeping up with my second hobby, running, and not looking into a book the whole entire time, I figured - it's time to stop wishing and start reading again! 

Anyway, if I were to consider buying a book again (won't happen in the next few weeks, I hope) it would totally be Clockwork Princess. Why? Because I kind of feel obligated to buy every Cassandra Clare book out there. Not that I intend to keep up with that habit in the next few weeks. Just saying. 

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Series I Want to Start But Haven't Yet

Can I just quickly state how much I love this week's topic? I can't wait to see all of your picks...and I don't know if ten is enough to list all of mine!

Already on my shelf:

1) Heist Society Series by Ally Carter

2) Graceling Series (Trilogy?) by Kristin Cashore

3) Ashes Trilogy by Ilsa J. Bick

4) Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

5) The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

6) The Paranormalcy Series by Kiersten White

7) The Rot & Ruin Series by Jonathan Maberry

8) The Gone Series by Michael Grant

9) The Iron Fey Series by Julie Kagawa

10) The Blood of Eden Series by Julie Kagawa

And the ones I'm dying tio put on my shelf:

11) The Shatter Me Trilogy by Tahereh Mafi

12) The Daughter of Smoke and Bone Series by Laini Taylor

13) The Newsoul Trilogy by Jodi Meadows

14)The Covenant Series by J.L Armentrout

15)The Lux Series by J.L Armentrout

16)The Secrets of the Eternal Rose Series by Fiona Paul

17) The Bright Young Things series by Anna Godbersen

18) The Chemical Garden Series by Lauren Destefano

19)The Unraveling trilogy by Elizabeth Norris

20) The Gallagher Girls Series by Ally Carter

Phew...Looking back at this, it's kind of intimidating. Also, I'm not even halfway through them all...

Which series do you want to start but haven't yet? What's keeping you from it? And do you read series back to back or does it take you forever to finish one (like me)? Happy Tuesday everyone!

Review: Mind Games by Kiersten White

Mind Games

by Kiersten White

Fia was born with flawless instincts. Her first impulse, her gut feeling, is always exactly right. Her sister, Annie, is blind to the world around her—except when her mind is gripped by strange visions of the future.
Trapped in a school that uses girls with extraordinary powers as tools for corporate espionage, Annie and Fia are forced to choose over and over between using their abilities in twisted, unthinkable ways…or risking each other’s lives by refusing to obey.
In a stunning departure from her New York Times bestselling Paranormalcy trilogy, Kiersten White delivers a slick, edgy, heartstoppingly intense psychological thriller about two sisters determined to protect each other—no matter the cost

 

Hardcover, 237 pages

Published February 19th 2013 by HarperTeen

 

A Long Story...Short!

This book scores with a world that literally plays games on your mind and messes with your brain - the abilities people have in this book did not only scare me at times - they also made me kind of paranoid as I was reading. Apart from that, though, I was not very fond of this story. The plot dragged a lot - in my opinion. The main characters got on my nerves - each in their very unique way. The unexpected ending caught my attention and made up for the rest of the book a bit, but I'm still not sure if I want to continue this series and Overall I expected a lot more.

 

RATING:

1/3 Smarties

Review for You:

I'd never read a book by Kiersten White before and I blame part of my disappointment on that. I expected something along the lines of how I imagined the Paranormalcy series to be - which was probably a bit too hypothetical to begin with. 

However, it's not like I hated this whole book. There were certain aspects I found really good. Mainly the premise - the mind-related abilities some people have in this Story were really original. It becomes terrifying after just a couple of pages, you always have to fear that someone will guess the heroine's thoughts or see what she plans. It creates a very...thrilling feeling throughout the book. 

It got too much, though, from a very early moment on.

It's not only the constant paranoia, it's also Fia's weird thought process emphasized by White's writing. I mean, I know that was probably the most important part of the book, but it just got on my nerves. One example? Fia was always thinking the words "wrong, wrong, wrong" and even though I know that was elemental to the plot - and later on it became even more brilliant - I couldn't help but want to throw my Kindle against a wall.

To make things worse, there was Annie. Woah. The way I see her, she is just a whiny, annoying sidekick that I was sick of as soon as she appeared on the pages. Whenever the story was told from her point of view, it took all my motivation and discipline to continue reading. 

Also, something I really don't like? When there's no real villain in a book. That, sadly, was the case in Mind Games. The big bad boy is talked about and he has some little helpers from whom we don't always know of if they're evil or not, but he never appears. He never really does something. And I want to know why he's doing all these evil things. And how he started building his evil institution! And what he plans to achieve with it! 

What I want to say is: I missed background information. A reason for this story to happen. I wanted plot twists to be unraveled instead of hearing the story of two sisters and their tragic childhood.

All in all, there were aspects I did like about this book, like the butt kicking Fia and the premise and ending of this book. However, the novel itself, everything between the first few and the last few pages was not enough for me to recommend it.