Somaya's Book of the Month: April 2014

I know, I know. I haven't posted in like 2 months. And I am really, truly sorry. I've just been drowned with school, and honestly I procrastinated. Here is some ice cream to show how truly sorry I am.

Anyways, this book of the month is Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. It's by Ransom Riggs. This book will give you goosebumps while reading it. It actually has stunning photos relating to the story. So let's start with the summary.

Summary: A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

In my opinion, this book is good for adults, teens or anyone willing to go on an amazing adventure. It is a fantasy book. I've fell in love with this book a lot. In fact, there is a sequel! It actually came out recently. I will do a book review when I finish it. Now, I advise you to read this book. It is filled with mystery, love and miracles. What are you waiting for?  Go put this book on hold! XD

Book Review: Roses

Book Review: Roses
Author: G. R. Mannering


I have read this book a while back, and it still sticks out to me because it's really different from all of those highly-named books that I read all of the time.

This book makes you embrace fairytales all over again. But then we aren't really children anymore and that's why there's a dark plot twist, just waiting for you to indulge in.

Roses is all about finding your imperfections and having people give you those glances to make certain that those flaws are actually there. You go through years of how Beauty feels before she reaches Beast and what she's meant to do.

Magic is something that is featured here so there is no need to be afraid of some dull plot line.

I actually won this book off of Goodreads as a giveaway and since I had a whole load of books piled on my desk that I had to read, I gave it to my friend to read first and she said it was amazing. It's a shocker because half of my friends don't like to read and this friend would be judging it against Beauty and the Beast from Disney.

When the book ends, it just leaves you hanging.
I have e-mailed the author and she has told me that there will be a sequel coming out. I also checked today that there was a companion called Buds. For the link to the PDF click here.

So happy reading.

Overall: 8.7/10

Signed,
Ivy

Book Review- The House of Hades

                                               Oct. 5, 2013

After dreading Tartarus for so long, our ship has been in danger for a year, what's to keep booknerds from over running the bookstores?

Spoilers! (as always) Read at your own expense.

Book Review: The House of Hades
Author: Rick Riordan

Percy and Annabeth stuck in the pits of the Underworld, Tartarus to be specific, made everyone squirmish. I have did a blog article on HoH before it came out on October 8th earlier this year.

Summary: At the conclusion of The Mark of Athena, Annabeth and Percy tumble into a pit leading straight to the Underworld. The other five demigods have to put aside their grief and follow Percy’s instructions to find the mortal side of the Doors of Death. If they can fight their way through the Gaea’s forces, and Percy and Annabeth can survive the House of Hades, then the Seven will be able to seal the Doors both sides and prevent the giants from raising Gaea. But, Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?
They have no choice. If the demigods don’t succeed, Gaea’s armies will never die. They have no time. In about a month, the Romans will march on Camp Half-Blood. The stakes are higher than ever in this adventure that dives into the depths of Tartarus.

This summary must be the one with the most spoilers in it ever. I get it, Percy Jackson and the Olympians are full of prophecies, but this is just too much.

Well as guessed, the Doors of Death are closed. That part right there- Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?- just practically screams out READ TO FIND OUT MORE! This is all I am going to say; I'm not "hating on" the series or anything of the sort.

While reading this book, there are certainly many reactions. I think that HoH would be my favorite book in the series because this books packs in even more character development than you would have thought.

SPOILERS!!!!

Quote of the Week – March 2, 2013

I think we'll finally be back on track now that we've limited quotes down to once a week (yeah, we're lazy). So, here's this week's quote: 

"That was the thing about tragedy. It was just sitting there, keeping you company, waiting. And you had absolutely no idea."

  – Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo

Kate DiCamillo was one of my favorite authors when I was younger. I've read Because of Winn-Dixie a million times (even saw the movie). So, when I heard she was writing a new book, I decided to check it out. And it was just like I expected: a lot of craziness mixed in with deep stuff, like this quote. Who would think to put a quote like this in a book for 10 year-olds?

Somaya will (hopefully) be doing the quote next week, and I will (probably not) be posting my Book of the Month for March later today. See you then.

– Nick

Quote of the Day- Feb. 22, 2014

"Circumstantial evidence is a very tricky thing... It may seem to point very straight to one thing, but if you shift your own point of view a little, you may find it pointing in an equally uncompromising manner to something entirely different."

-Sherlock Holmes, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Well, I have this classic sitting on my bookshelf waiting to be read, but the tiny letters are a bit upsetting to me. Anyways, when I have time, I'll add more reviews and such since the public school system has been taking a whole chunk of my free time away.

Shift your view just a little.

Signed,
Ivy

Update!

Well, hey guys there's a new update for your booknerd needs and what-nots.

This year is going to be perfect with all the filming and books being released. I'm going to warn you now, the blog post will be long featuring TMI, Divergent, PJO, THG, and a special something.

The Mortal Instruments

I) City of Heavenly Fire 

by Cassandra Clare
May, 27th, 2014

Summary: Darkness has descended on the Shadowhunter world. Chaos and destruction overwhelm the Nephilim as Clary, Jace, Simon, and their friends band together to fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary's own brother. Nothing in this world can defeat Sebastian—but if they journey to the realm of demons, they just might have a chance... Lives will be lost, love sacrificed, and the whole world will change. Who will survive the explosive sixth and final installment of the Mortal Instruments series?

Not the TMI fandom that's for sure.

Seriously who expects us to read through the deaths of six characters that we know by name? It's the last book too. I'm not happy. I am not okay, not one single drop of happiness has reached me.

Sebastian, you evil little... I'm glaring at him. No really.

The sad thing is, I still haven't finished the end of Allegiant, apparently that's even worse.

Anyways, get more info on the book at Cassandra Clare's website here.

II) CoA Movie Postponement

This has been news for a while, but The Mortal Instruments: City of Ashes will be likely to be "shelved" since the first movie hadn't been a success.

To make matters worse, the cast might even be replaced in the time that the movie's script is being changed up. I really hope they do stick to the book. 

 I had just got my friend into the TMI fandom and she asked me when the movie was coming out (I know most of this stuff) and I was like "Never, with Sony being a b****"

She still didn't understand what I was saying so I told her the ticket sales for the first movie was not great. We both got seriously depressed because that it what Cassie and the whole fandom does to people. Not kidding.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians

I)Percy Jackson's Greek Gods

by Rick Riordan
August 19, 2014
Who's not excited for a book that comes out a day after Percy Jackson's birthday?!?!

I sure am. It's because of some publishing issues that they had to make it a day late, but still pretty significant, isn't it?

What do you think for the art on the cover? I think that everyone but Zeus and Poseidon look okay. I mean really, the film even portrayed them better than this. They are not two fat guys that are shirtless staring down at Percy Jackson.

It's sad that Annabeth isn't on the cover though. (I'm pouting, but you really can't see my face.)

Read more about it here.

II) Blood of Olympus

by Rick Riodan
October 7, 2014

I checked some of the PJO websites on Facebook earlier in the morning and I'm happy to know the book is coming out a day earlier than it was last year. I also don't want to breeze through it because sadly, it's going to be the end of Percy Jackson's adventures that we read of in books -and not if there's a probability short stories.- These series has been there for me all throughout my middle school years so it seems fitting to end when I start high school next school year.

Unfortunately, I still cannot get the front cover of the book although I believe there is a summary. And there is.

 Though the Greek and Roman crew-members of the Argo II have made progress in their many quests, they still seem no closer to defeating the earth mother, Gaea. Her giants have risen—all of them, and they're stronger than ever. They must be stopped before the Feast of Spes, when Gaea plans to have two demigods sacrificed in Athens. She needs their blood—the blood of Olympus—in order to wake. The demigods are having more frequent visions of a terrible battle at Camp Half-Blood. The Roman legion from Camp Jupiter, led by Octavian, is almost within striking distance. Though it is tempting to take the Athena Parthenos to Athens to use as a secret weapon, the friends know that the huge statue belongs back on Long Island, where it might be able to stop a war between the two camps. The Athena Parthenos will go west; the Argo II will go east. The gods, still suffering from multiple personality disorder, are useless. How can a handful of young demigods hope to persevere against Gaea's army of powerful giants? As dangerous as it is to head to Athens, they have no other option. They have sacrificed too much already. And if Gaea wakes, it is game over.


So a little FYI- Rick Riordan has never even watched Percy Jackson and the Lighting Thief that was directed by Chris Columbus saying that it would change his perspective in how he saw the characters. (Rick's twitter is @camphalfblood)

It is also a running joke from Uncle Rick's twitter that there is going to be a new movie coming out. One  that the PJO fandom has never heard before. It is named Percy Jackson and the Curse of Titanium.

A fun fact to add to your day. Probably the weirdest ship name ever is Person. Take a guess.... No, not Percabeth, Percico, Perlia... How about Thalia's brother, perhaps, Jason? Percy x Jason. Person. Nice ship name, I prefer Percabeth and Jeyna and then there's Jason/brick fanfictions.

It's finally here! Awards 2013

Well, it's been a really weird ride. These awards have been in trouble from the start, from not being done on time to never getting a name. There's also the fact that we couldn't agree on anything. But, here it is, two weeks late: the 2013 Awards.

Best Movie Adaptation of 2013: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

This was the one thing that Somaya, Ivy, and I 100% agreed on. Catching Fire was just fantastic. It was better in every way than its prequel, and was one of the two movies that I have ever, in my entire life, thought was better than the book (FYI, the other was The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe). You can read my Catching Fire review here. 

Best Quote of 2013: "There are so many ways to be brave in this world. Sometimes bravery involves laying down your life for something bigger than yourself, or for someone else. Sometimes it involves giving up everything you have ever known, or everyone you have ever loved, for the sake of something greater.

But sometimes it doesn't.

Sometimes it is nothing more than gritting your teeth through pain, and the work of every day, the slow walk toward a better life.

That is the sort of bravery I must have now."

— Allegiant, Veronica Roth

We liked this quote because it put the entire Divergent series into a different persepective and really makes you reflect.

You can read Nick's review here.

Best Book of 2013: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Princess was truly a great ending to a great series. We couldn't have asked for more from Cassandra Clare.

You can read Nick's review here.

Most Anticipated Movie of 2014: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1

Catching Fire was so amazing, how could we not want to see the sequel?

Most Anticipated Book of 2014: The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan

The conclusion of the entire PJO series is a can't-miss for us. Wait, it is the conclusion, right? I might just go crazy if I have to wait for a third series.

So, what did you think? Do you think that these winners deserved to win? Tell us why in the comments. :)

— The Co-authors

Quote of the Week- 1st Week of Feb

-Park Sheridan, Eleanor & Park written by Rainbow Rowell

That pretty much says it all.


 I found this picture off Google so no creds go to me.

Signed,
Ivy

Ivy's Book Of The Month- February 2014

  I have read this book a while back, and it still sticks out to me because it's really different from all of those highly-named books that I read all of the time. 

This book makes you embrace fairytales all over again. But then we aren't really children anymore and that's why there's a dark plot twist, just waiting for you to indulge in.

Summary: A dark rendition of the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast!

'As the gates clicked shut behind them, she heard the distant roar of a beast.'

She bears no name. Her silvery appearance is freakish to the numerous inhabitants of Sago, the cosmopolitan capital of Pevorocco in a fantasy realm. With her mother vanishing at the instance of her birth, she is sent to live with the cruel, rich Ma Dane, where she is punished daily for something, though she knows not what. Tauntingly named Beauty, she flees Sago in a violent uprising that sets out to massacre all Magics and journeys to the furthest point of the country.

But Beauty cannot hide in the grassy Hillands forever. Before long, the State officials find her and threaten to take her back to war-torn Sago where death surely awaits. In a midnight blizzard she escapes them, running into a deep, enchanted forest to a great and terrible beast who will bargain for her life.

But can Beauty accept Beast? Eternity is a long time.

The Infernal Devices – TRIPLE Book Review

Series: The Infernal Devices

Author: Cassandra Clare

Books:

1. Clockwork Angel
2. Clockwork Prince
3. Clockwork Princess

Previous books by this author:

1. City of Bones (My rating: 9.0)
2. City of Ashes (My rating: 8.9)
3. City of Glass (My rating: 9.3)
4. City of Fallen Angels (My rating: 9.2)
5. City of Lost Souls (My rating: 8.7)

Reviewer: Nick

When I started reading these books, a friend told me that The Infernal Devices was better than The Mortal Instruments. I was skeptical, first because I thought TMI was very good, and second because (excluding The Heroes of Olympus) sequel/prequel series are never as good as the first ones (See The 39 Clues: Vespers Rising, The 39 Clues: Unstoppable, Wolves of the Beyond, Deltora Shadowlands (although Dragons of Deltora was fine), Warriors: The New Prophecy, 

Warriors: Power of Three, and 

Warriors: Omen of the Stars. Did I miss any? Oh yeah: Warriors: Dawn of the Clans. How could I forget?) But SHE WAS RIGHT! It's is better!!!

If I had to describe Clockwork Angel, I'd say it was everything like City of Bones, but better! The main storyline is similar (more on that later). But the two main things that set the two series apart are the time periods and the characters.

First, the setting. One thing I loved about The Mortal Instruments (that I think went unappreciated) was the fact that Clare was so comfortable writing modern characters the the reader could relate to. Remember, Clare is an adult. So making Clary, Jace, and Simon seem like normal, modern teenagers despite the fact that they're, you know, supernatural beings was quite the feat. However, I think she did an even better job portraying Victorian London. Clare makes you feel like you lived in London in the 1880's—and boy, do you not want to leave.

At first glance, Tessa, Jem, Jessamine, and Jace—oops, I mean Will—are just carbon copies of Clary, Alec, Isabelle, and WillJace. But this is not the case. Tessa, Jem, Jessamine and Will are much better characters than their TMI counterparts. I've always thought of Izzy and Alec as being one-dimensional characters. They have a lot of potential, but Clare doesn't realize it in the TMI books. And Jace has far too many of the "tortured hot guy" clichés. On the other hand, Clare went all out in The Infernal Devices. Will takes self-destructive to a whole new level. Jessamine has an internal struggle about her whole identity (Tessa's not short on that either). And Jem proves you can be the good, dependable guy without being gullible. 

The supporting characters are a great improvement over TMI as well. You have the head of the London Institute, Charlotte, and her husband, Henry, who play a much bigger role than Maryse and Robert Lightwood. First of all, they're awesome characters. Charlotte is probably my favorite out of all the characters. A woman running one of the most powerful Institutes in the 1800's is a hard job, but Charlotte does it and is awesome at her job.

You can tell Clare loves to incoporate political themes into her books, and it really showed here. The inner workings of the Council and the Clave are showcased, and that's just a lot of fun.

Anyway, I have to wrap this review up because I forgot about it for a month and now have no idea what I was going to do with the rest of it. I think that, overall, The Infernal Devices was way better than The Mortal Instruments. Cassandra Clare definitely learned from her mistakes, and put those lessons into these. I'm going to predict that she will just keep getting better. And on that note, I can't wait for the third Shadowhunter series, The Dark Artifices, to come out in 2015.

Final score:

Clockwork Angel: 9.4 out of 10

Clockwork Prince: 9.5 out of 10

Clockwork Princess: 9.7 out of 10

If you liked this book, then you'd like:

• Blue is for Nightmares by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Next review: Blue is for Nightmares by Laurie Faria Stolarz

 — Nick

We're sorry. Don't hate us.

If you're one of the few people who actually pay attention to this blog, we're sorry for not doing anything this past month. Here's a random picture of a cute cat:

You can't possibly hate us after looking at that now, right?

Anyway, we haven't been posting lately because of a bunch of reasons, but mostly because we're lazy. ;) We've realized that doing Quote of the Day was a little too much, so we're back to Quote of the Week until the summer. Quotes will be posted on Sundays. I'll start with one right after I post this.

Also, we're really sorry about not doing the awards thing (which still has no name!!!) on the 18th like we said. Well, better 8 days late than never. I'll be posting that later.

In other news, we'll probably be getting back on track with regular reviews and Book of the Month soon. Stay tuned!

— Nick

Happy New Year! And the Nominations Are…

Happy 2014! Here at Booknerds Love Books (DUH!), we're going to try to make 2014 an awesome year!

We'll start with that book awards thing I told you guys about on Christmas, remember? It's still got no name, but here are the nominations:

Best Movie Adaptation:

The Book Thief

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

Best Quote:
"People talk about the pain of grief, but I don't know what they mean. To me grief is a devastating numbness, every sensation dulled."

 — Allegiant, Veronica Roth

"There are so many ways to be brave in this world. Sometimes bravery involves laying down your life for something bigger than yourself, or for someone else. Sometimes it involves giving up everything you have ever known, or everyone you have ever loved, for the sake of something greater.

But sometimes it doesn't.

Sometimes it is nothing more than gritting your teeth through pain, and the work of every day, the slow walk toward a better life.

That is the sort of bravery I must have now."

— Allegiant, Veronica Roth

“Life is a book and there are a thousand pages I have not yet read.”

— Clockwork Princess, Cassandra Clare

"Your brain does amazing acrobatics when it doesn't want to believe something."

— Rose Under Fire, Elizabeth Wein

"Things don't magically take off and fly just because it's a little windy."

— Rose Under Fire, Elizabeth Wein

Best Book:

Allegiant by Veronica Roth

Champion by Marie Lu

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

The Elite by Kiera Cass

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

The House of Hades by Rick Riordan

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Most Anticipated 2014 Movie:

Divergent (Mar 21)

The Fault in Our Stars (Jun 6)

The Hobbit: There and Back Again (Dec 17)

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 (Nov 21)

The Maze Runner (Feb 14)

Most Anticipated 2014 Book:

The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan (Oct)

City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare (May 27)

The One by Kiera Cass (May 6)

Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman (Feb 25)

Tremor by Patrick Carman (Feb 25)

Who do you want to win? Tell us in the comments, and stay tuned for the winners, who should be announced on January 18!

— The co-authors (aka Nick did most of the work :P)

Update!: John Green Stuff

Yes, I stole Ivy's thing. Whatever, I wanted to talk about this. – Nick

For those of you who don't follow John Green on Youtube, I suggest you do so right now. His blog is the best way to get news on his books, and it's also hilarious. Go here.

Those of you who do follow his blog probably know the following two news things, but read anyway because I'm gonna talk about them.

A new book?

First up, yes, John Green is writing a new book!! It's probably going to be called The Racket, and only a little of it has been written yet. John can still scrap it if he doesn't like it, but still. It's a John Green book; how can it not be good? We still know absolutely nothing about the content of the book, but I'm pumped for it. It's been too long since a John Green book came out.

TFiOS poster!

The first promotional poster for The Fault in Our Stars was released! Here's what it looks like:

Amazing, right? There are three things that stand out to me when looking at this poster:

1. The same font as the book. I don't know why I love this font so much; I just do. I think it represents the story well: the fact that it's not a fancy, perfect love story, but a messy one that's realistic.

2. Hazel's cannula. It's a great sign that they're adding small details like this. In the book, a big theme is that they don't just have cancer, they have to go through cancer and all of the trouble it gives them, like having to wear a cannula all day long.

3. The tagline. When you looked at the tagline for the first time, you probably (like me) thought that it was horrible. It makes the whole story into a terrible pun. It seems like such a bad way to sum on the story. Not really—think about it. Isn't that exactly what Hazel would say?

On that thought, here's to hoping that we get a trailer soon! The Fault in Our Stars comes out June 6!

 — Nick

Book Review- Scarlet

                                                                                                                          October 7th, 2013

You choose to be the hunter or the hunted.

SPOILERS! Read at your own expense.
Book Review- Scarlet
Author: Marissa Meyer


I have finished yet another book in the Lunar Chronicles. This book is out to get you. With even more adventure than the first one gives, I like the characters much more.

Summary: The fates of Cinder and Scarlet collide as a Lunar threat spreads across the Earth...
Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.
Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Instead of just getting the view of Cinder, we also have Scarlet Benoit. And not just focusing on New Beijing, we go to the outskirts of Paris, France. Though in science fiction a lot has changed the surroundings.
Cinder meets a new friend, a captain with a space craft. That isn't to be quite messed with. 

I really liked this book because it has all the perfect elements. 

Wolf in this book has the actually literal wolfish features. With pointed canines and a different battling style, he has made a name for himself. (A side story: The Queen's Army can be found on Google if you search for epub.)

Scarlet's a girl on a farm. Nothing seems to go wrong for her most of the time, other than in the case of some unwilling customer paying for their farm-fresh vegetables. 

Prince Kai is even more doubtful than he used to be. To be honest with everything, I think he's even more pathetic than he was in the first book before he became emperor. Foreign affairs make life very hard; that much I have learned.

Cinder is even more of a rebel and fugitive than she was in the first book. With bad-ass tranquilizers installed into her cyborg arm, she's ready. Already haven escaped her jail cell, she escapes the prison itself. 

Queen Levana. What's to say about her that'll put her into a better light? I'm not even sure myself. Isolated and very hostile, she will not stop at ANYTHING. Yeah, that Levana in a nutshell- not literally of course. (That would be very funny.)

This book packs the action of only a few days into the needs of a full book giving extra detail to everything essential. 

Overall Rating: 9.2/10

Signed,
Ivy

Our Holiday Gift to You

Happy Whatever-You-Celebrate! Today's Christmas, and what better time to announce something about your blog than when you're avoiding people at a family Christmas party?

So, on January 1st, Ivy, Somaya, and I will begin this book award thingy where we tell you what our favorites of 2013 were, and what we're most looking forward to in 2014. On the 1st, we'll announce the nominations, and sometime during the month we'll announce the winners. It'll be just like the professionals do for movies and TV shows. I know this explanation is lame, but it'll be cool. I swear on the River Styx xD.

Do you have any suggestions for last minute-reading for me to do? Anything that came out in 2013 is fair game! Get commenting, and we'll get reading. Happy Holidays!

— Nick

Catching Fire – Movie Review

Let's talk a little about movie adaptations. Movie adaptations are hard to make. They're also very easy to mess up. It's nearly impossible to appease fans of the source material and people who have no emotional connection to the book whatsoever.

(Warning: The following rant contains excessive name-dropping of below-par movie adaptations.)

Sometimes the movie may actually be not bad, but the fact that it strayed from the book so much could anger hardcore fans. Take Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. To an outsider, it's not such a bad movie. It had a solid plot and likeable, if one-dimensional, characters. But to a hardcore fan, it was terrible. Major plot points that came back in the rest of the series were just ignored, leaving nothing to build on. Leading to why Sea of Monsters was almost as bad.

You can also have the exact opposite. The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones basically copied the first half of the movie exactly from the book, dialogue and everything. This pleased many fans, including myself. But the movie critics weren't fooled. They hated the movie, and we the fans were puzzled. After thinking it over, the critics have a point. The moviemakers were so concerned with reproducing exact plot points to appease the fans that they didn't make a good movie overall. It didn't capture the dark, humorous tone of the books, and suffered because of that.

Now The Hunger Games was a rare adaptation that did not directly fall into one of these two traps. The screenplay was written by Suzanne Collins, who began her career in television writing. That helped a lot. However, it's my opinion that authors should not write the adaptations of their own books. They're always tempted to make exact copies of their books (See The Perks of Being a Wallflower). But listen: I don't want an exact copy of the book. I could just read the book and imagine a movie. I want the director to sit back, look at the book and think, "How can I make it better?" And unlike The Hunger Games's Gary Ross, Catching Fire director Francis Lawrence did that. And it worked beautifully.

Catching Fire was AMAZING. Truly a fantastic movie. It was just mind-blowingly good. "Mind-blowingly." Wasn't a word before. It is now.

Let us now have a moment of silence for the shaky-cam filming and bad CGI. You will always be remembered as what ruined the first movie. Thank you for your service…

All jokes aside, they were both gone! A ton more money was put into this movie, and you can tell. All the special effects are much better. The arena is fantastically done. It's all very well done.

The cast is also phenomenal. Jennifer Lawrence's performance as Katniss was one of the best that I've ever seen. The supporting cast is as solid as they were in the original. The major new additions were Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Plutarch, Sam Claflin as Finnick, and Jena Malone as Johanna. There was a lot of skepticism around Claflin's casting from the fans. I have no clue why (Maybe he wasn't hot enough for the fangirls? I don't know.). He was perfectly fine as Finnick, no worries there. Hoffman was solid as Plutarch as well. The real surprise here was Jena Malone. The writers increased Johanna's role a little in the movie, and Malone took it in stride. She captured Johanna's crazy, I-don't-care-what-anyone-thinks-about-me attitude perfectly.

The plot was changed very little. You know, I might not even have any spoilers in this review… LOL, jk. Spoilers will come later. Here are the un-spoilery plot changes:

1. President Snow's granddaughter. If you've read the third book, you would know that President Snow's granddaughter is mentioned once or twice. Her appearance in Catching Fire indicates that she may have a bigger role in Mockingjay. I can't wait!!

2. Mind games. The one disadvantage of the book is that the reader only saw Katniss's perspective. The movie was able to show more of President Snow & Plutarch playing with Katniss. The mind games they play are featured much more prominently, and it ties the movie together in such a way that is amazing.

Now for those spoilers I promised…

Seriously, there are only two spoiler things I want to discuss. There were two things that they left out of the movie that I was hoping for. First, in the book, Plutarch shows Katniss his expensive watch, which is supposed to give her an idea of the fact that the arena is a clock. Of course, at that point he thought she was going to be mentoring tributes in those games, but still. It was a nice bit of foreshadowing that was left out. The second was my favorite quote from the book. You know the part where Cinna tells Katniss and Peeta to look straight ahead while they're in the chariots? Well, I was really looking forward to Katniss saying, "Finally, something I'll be good at." and IT DIDN'T HAPPEN. Ugh.

Anyway, there were only two minor things I would've included. And that's a crazily small number, considering how nitpicky I am.

Spoilers over.

I think that Francis Lawrence and crew did a fantastic job with Catching Fire. It was truly amazing, I would even say it was better than the book. And the book is one of my top 10 books ever. That's how good this movie was.

Final score: 9.8 out of 10

Mockingjay Part 1 comes out on November 21, 2014!!!!!!!

- Nick 

Book Review: Cinder

                                                              October 4th, 2013

Odd one out. People are scared of things that they are not- things that are beyond their knowledge. Are you the odd or the same?

Book Review: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer


Summary: Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Cinder is the mechanic of New Beijing.  And as the summary suggests, she is a lucky girl -more like cyborg- that gets to meet the Prince.

Prince Kai faces the death of the Emperor and is the new one in its monarchy. The Lunar Queen Levana is willing to create an alliance with New Beijing if Kai is to marry her. If the Prince falls in love unlikely with our
Cinder, what's to happen?

Secrets exchange hands as the girl learns about who she really is. The story follows the tale of Cinderella. But Lihn Cinder is not your Cinderella. As much as she is a servant, she's many other things. Lunars are people from the moon. Manipulative in many minds of humans, they're scary and forbidden to escape from Luna as fugitives.

When her sister dies from the plague spreading around a lot more is to come. This story blends adventure with romance and science fiction. Everything is different in this narrative of a teenage "mutant".

In the disease-stricken metropolis (like many other stories) fans are created in a world that Marissa Meyer spins out.

I really liked this book and would read it all over again if I had been given the time.

Overall Rating: 8.7/10

Signed,

Ivy

Main Ships and Other Ships

Lately, I realized there's a trend to every book I've read, TV show or anime that I've watched.

The main ships (pairings) for everything is starting to feel too mainstream for me. Is that bad? I have no idea.

It's those more minor ships that get to me. I can be reading the first book and I'll be happily shipping the main characters. The sequel comes out and the more sidekick like character finds a love interest- I pair them more than the main characters in the first book/show.


Is it only me -are you like that too? Please be weird with me. JK-
Comment below.

Signed,
Ivy

P.S. I've read so much already. The review section needs renovation, will type up reviews later.

Quote of the Day - December 18, 2013

"There's plenty of sense in nonsense sometimes, if you wish to look for it."

- Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

- Nick

Quote of the Day - December 12, 2013

"Maybe the body finds untapped reserves when it needs to; maybe the fear of dying makes it do extraordinary things."

- Itch by Simon Mayo

 Doesn't this explain every cliche ending in every sci-fi book/movie ever?

I've been reading this book on-and-off for months, and luckily a slooooooow middle gave way to a pretty good ending.

- Nick