Review: Just One Wish

Just One Wish by Janette Rallison

My rating: 1 of 5 stars



In reading through the other reviews, I'm wondering if there is an alternate version out there that is good. The book I read featured an obnoxious and foolhardy girl that needed a therapist. Instead, this teenager arranges to follow a whim to grant a wish and the book is the story of her irresponsible and stupid attempt. I was curious to see the outcome of the surgery so I read/skimmed until the end. Otherwise, I would have given up when she bought snakes to fake an animal handling job.



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Review: The Journal of Curious Letters

The Journal of Curious Letters by James Dashner

My rating: 2 of 5 stars



This was a tough book. The language, style, characters - all of it was well-suited for a younger audience. The book itself, though, was long. Much, much longer than the attention span of my 7 and 9 year old children. It was interesting and easy to follow in the beginning but as the story continued, it was harder and harder to keep reading. After the cemetery and the entrance to the alternate reality, we fizzled out. The book sat around for awhile and never got picked back up. It wasn't a bad book...but it wasn't really readable for us.



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Review: The Hunt For Atlantis

The Hunt For Atlantis by Andy McDermott

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Sometimes you just need a book that will drag you along with it's action-packed story until you realize that you're actually enjoying the trip. I think I really needed something more adventurous and the bullets, explosions and bad guys were everywhere in this book. Was it over the top and completely unbelievable? Yes - but it was also a fun read. I liked this more than other books of it's type because it broke a few of the adventure rules - good guys weren't immortal and the bad guys were sometimes hard to find. Definitely a good book if you are in the mood for a huge body count and a unique setting!



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Review: Matched

Matched by Ally Condie

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



This story felt so similar to me. It was a little like Hunger Games, a little bit of The Giver, a shadow of The Declaration, and a huge taste of 1984. Luckily, the young adult version of Big Brother is more enjoyable than the classic version.

I seem to be in a dystopian mood lately, which means I'll likely read book #2. It has potential - I just hopes it rises above other books in the genre in the next one.



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Review: The Haunting of Hill House

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

My rating: 1 of 5 stars



I'm one of those 'the book is always better than the movie' zealots. And with absolutely abysmal movie versions, it shouldn't be hard to exceed the very low standards...but it didn't.

I hated this book. Forget the house, all I need to scare myself is to hear Eleanor quote Shakespeare again. Seriously. It made me want to stab myself in the eye.

Terrible book.



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Review: Septimus Heap: The Magykal Papers

Septimus Heap: The Magykal Papers by Angie Sage

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Sometimes a series can lead to fun, entertaining or informational add-on books. Sometimes they can't. The Septimus Heap series is definitely one that could! The book design was awesome and everything was written in the same tone as the books so that if you read the books, you can recognize the characters because they are exactly as you have come to expect them to be. It's not a book that can be read in one sitting, though. Because there isn't a storyline, it's most enjoyed when read a page or two at a time. My only complaint is that this book had to change my mental images of the Heap family. The only one that was drawn as I picture him is Simon! It's funny how we can all read the same story but imagine it so differently. My favorite part focused on the Ramblings. I loved it!



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Review: She's So Dead to Us

She's So Dead to Us by Kieran Scott

My rating: 1 of 5 stars



Wow. There is so much I dislike about this book that I'm not sure where to start.

Let's see... Maybe the bullying that Ally is apparently too stupid to recognize? Or believe? And that Jake is too stupid to stop? Or the fact the book is filled with with F*** (sorry...not sure what GoodReads policy is on swearing and don't want to get booted!) from characters that don't even say h*** or d*** or even b****? And I can't forget about the supporting characters - a girl that stalks the popular crowd, writes down their conversations and memorizes meaningless details about them; a girl that is so over the top crazy and obsessed that a movie version of her would be pulling out a machete at prom and end up as the unsuspected serial killer; the kids in school that are invented so that the author can insert texts rather than give the actual characters any depth; or the mom that moves back to a town but can't see her daughter's shunning even though she works at the school?

No. I think what really did me in was the ending. Or, actually, the non-ending. Big party. Huge scene. Dramatic announcement. Turn the page and see acknowledgments. We finally get to a part of the story worth reading and it's not there. Reading this was a complete waste of my time.

GoodReads recommendations, you let me down!!



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