Rate and review the last book you read

El Asedio (The Siege), by Arturo Pérez-Reverte. 9/10

I may be a bit biased, since I've been fan of the author since I was 14, but I think this is one of his best novels. Mr APR manages to combine a serial-killer thriller with an excellent portrait of the Cádiz of 1811 with both the political tension (the Courts enacted the Constitution in 1812) and the everyday life of the Gaditans; not to mention that in the way he creates some wonderful characters. It keeps you on tenterhooks till the very last page.

I wouldn't like to be the person to translate this book. The language is so precise that I'm afraid many things will get lost in translation.

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin 9/10

A very tragic but also very moving little novel that is superbly written.

Matilda. 8/10
It was fun to read , a must read with the girls book. Read it in a Jiffy cause it is very easy to read. But I was quite amused as I read it.:)

Austenland by Shannon Hale 7/10

It was complete chick-lit. It's not deep or great writing, but it was cute and super cheesy and my inner 12-year old was happy :p

Ooh I just got into Shannon Hale. I read Princess Academy (7/10) and The Goose Girl (8/10). They were both happy, fantasy books, and yeah, my inner young teenage girl was happy. But yeah, I will get t Austenland eventually. Working my way through this trilogy atm though.

7/10 The Guardian by Dee Henderson
It was a fun read. I would have rated it higher, but the ending felt too rushed.

Odd Hours -- 8/10 -- a pretty good installment in the Odd Thomas series, not quite as funny as the previous installments, but still worth the read :).

10/10 Of Mice and Men :sad: :love:

10/10 Of Mice and Men :love: :upset:

Dubliners by James Joyce - 8/10

Fried Green Tomatoes At The Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg - 6/10

Princess On The Brink

The first 15/16ths of it were quite a bit irritating. Only the last 50 pages made up for it. 6/10

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, by Agatha Christie 9/10

Misterious, hilarious and with a very surprising end...

Technically I have to split this into three categories.

The most recent book I actually read was a set of D&D rules. I have to give it a 4/10. The game's 4th edition sucks so much compared to its 1st edition, which I gamemastered for 12 years and which required a lot more creativity, with much less frivolous nonsense, than the current one.

The most recent book with a story I finished that I hadn't read before was Sense & Sensibility. The only reason I give it a mere 9.9/10 is that I'd finished Pride & Prejudice before it and I can't bring myself to rate them the same exact score.

The most recent book with a story that I finished and that was a re-read was The Stand, Complete and Uncut by Stephen King. Like the first time I read it, I continue to rate it a 10/10 and call it the greatest novel I've read to be released since The Great Gatsby.

Proven Guilty. Possibly the best Dresden Files books that I've read so far.

The Dark Divine by Bree Despain 10/10

It's an amazing book and I enjoyed it immensely. Lots of mystery and a huge twist at the end I really didn't see coming. I suggest it to everyone.

The White Queen by Philippa Gregory - 7/10

Well-written historical fiction from Gregory. A good pageturner.

Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde - 10/10.

This book is the story about Eddie Russett, who lives in our world but after the Something that Happened. (As far as I can tell, the Something Happened about hundred years or so into our future, and in the book it's been 500 years since that.) Everything in the new world is based around which colour you can see, and how much of that colour you see. Eddie is a Red, and without giving anything away that you can't read on the back of the book, he falls in love with a Grey called Jane. There is something about Jane (and it's not just her nose) - she knows something. Something the rest of the world doesn't know, something the leaders don't want people to know.

I really enjoyed Shades of Grey and the way it tells about class, people's ability to ignore what they don't want to see (the Apocryphal Man is a good example of this) and accept anything the government says, and all the humour. I love how there were little things everywhere, things you can recognise as objects from our own world, that the people in the future described in the book had not gotten the right meaning of. And all the lost books! :lol:

I thought it was great how it said in the end that Brunswick & deMauve will return in Shades of Grey 2: Painting by Numbers and Shades of Grey 3: The Gordini Protocols, because even if you saw it before you'd finished the book (I did, when I checked how many pages it was), it didn't give away that Eddie survived the yateveo, or who he married, or how his and Jane's story went., or anything at all, really.

Also, I liked that Jane and Eddie didn't end up together. Don't get me wrong, I found it sad (especially since they're not even supposed to speak to each other because of the result of Jane's Ishihara), but it would be too perfect, if you see what I mean. A good author should know when an ending gets too good, and Fforde proved that he does. Though it is not the final ending, and I am very happy for that. It was a great book, and I will definitely read it again.

When I was reading, I planned to give Shades of Grey a 9/10, but I liked the ending so much it got another point. In fact, I would've given it at least 11/10 if it wasn't for my rule about not giving more than ten points. I can't wait for the next book, Painting by Numbers!

Things Fall Apart - 7/10
It was well-written and I enjoyed learning about some elements of African culture, but I just couldn't get used to the main character being the antagonist. I couldn't stand him, and I think that made the book much less enjoyable.

I finished Return of the King! :clap: :D 10/10!
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 10/10 :sad:

So. I'm not really a fan of x.y ratings, and especially the ones that aren't x.5s, but sometimes it's needed. Such as now: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer - 6.8/10. It's not a 7, not a 6, and 6.5 seemed too little, so 6.8. I still agree with my thoughts (http://www.cosforums.com/showpost.php?p=5549554&postcount=385) on it when I started to read it. I don't think I'll ever reread it, but I do not regret reading it; it was a good read. :)

During a break between books, I went back and gave Jane Austen's Guide to Good Manners: Compliments, Charades and Horrible Blunders by Josephine Ross a proper reading. It was every bit as relevant and as hilarious as my first impression of it had been, and what's more, it's actually extremely accurate. Fans of Pride & Prejudice et al. will find it a useful tool for explaining some of the character behavior in The Authoress' books that the reader of today may not initially understand. 9/10.

I just finished Readicide, a professional book about teaching practices that kill reading for kids. Very insightful. Many good ideas. Must think about how to take a few ideas and weave them into my classes.

I read the Percy Jackson series last week and really liked them I'd say overall, 4/5 for them. They were fun to read, if a bit predictable, and a very nice diversion. I got to the end and wished there were more for me to read.

I just finished "The Book Thief" by Zusak. I'd give it a 9/10. It's been a long time since a book actually made me spill tears. It's about WWII but from a very original point of view, it's nothing like other books set during wartime.

Den siste magiker (The Last Magician if you translate it into English) by Sigbjørn Mostue - 9/10

Very good, close to a 10, but not quite. I'm looking forward to the last two books in the trilogy, I honestly can't wait. (Why do they split them up in trilogies anyway? I would like to read the other two parts NOW! :grumble:) I have some theories on how things will turn out. Or rather, what's going on that we've been given clues about but haven't really seen? :D

I love finding good, Norwegian Fantasy books. It's been some time since last time now. But to make up for it, this is a very promising trilogy. I'll have to find some more of Mostue's work now.

Mansfield Park by Jane Austen. I really loved that book. Probably much more than P&P. Although, the ending was a bit dark, it wasn't totally unexpected. And I like, Fanny, the main character quite a bit.

10/10 to my companion during the finals' weeks! :clap:

Maurice 10/10 for one of my favourite novels - compelling writing and a bittersweet story of growing self-awareness

I just finished Ian Fleming's From Russia with Love. Although it was definitely not my favourite Bond book, it was still a good read. The exciting second half of the novel won out over the slightly boring first half.

8/10

8/10 The Devil Wears Prada

Despised and Rejected 9/10

One of the bravest novels I ever read. It has a teensy problem with melodrama but other than that it is a very good read.

Extraordinary Stories, by Roald Dahl 8/10

You know, when I was a child I liked Dahl's children books because they were written with that style of his, clear and direct, that, though funny, never took you for an idiot and didn't spare you the unpleasant things. Now I'm discovering that when he wrote for adults he did it exactly in the same way... and I like him even more.

Into the Wild

Very good book. It took me a while to get really hooked on it. Maybe because I'm generally a fiction girl. Toward the latter half I became engrossed in it--probably because it became more narrative in structure. I enjoyed it and would recommend.

10/10Flowers for Algernon
Such a good book, a little sad. :sad:

Fantastic Mr. Fox - 3/10

Finished The Catcher in the Rye. It was pretty good. 7/10

The Alchemist by Michael Scott - 10/10

I absolutely loved this book! :clap: :D

My Legendary Girlfriend by Mike Gayle- 7/10

I give Jodi Picoult's House Rules 9/10.

I give Stephenie Meyer's Twilight 3/10.

Persuasion by Jane Austen. The book was great, but its not my favourite Austen book. I thought it was a bit rushed at the end. 9/10.

Persuasion by Jane Austen. The book was great, but its not my favourite Austen book. I thought it was a bit rushed at the end. 9/10.Ah, you finished already. I am about 1/3 of the way through the book. Was the ending as rushed as Sense & Sensibility?

The ABC Murders - 7/10

The Westing Game - 10/10

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I loved it, but I like the movie much better, :). 9/10

White Night by Jim Butcher. :tu: More Thomas in this one, which is always a good thing. :D

10/10 What's Eating Gilbert Grape
Different from the movie adaption in certain ways, but still good on it's own. :)

6/10 The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie

It's ok for the most part, but some of it is rather hard to follow at times.

White Night by Jim Butcher. More Thomas in this one, which is always a good thing.

Yep, he's quite funny. :lol:.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. I think that book is really worth reading. 10/10

White Night by Jim Butcher. :tu: More Thomas in this one, which is always a good thing. :D
Yep it is :D. Love Thomas...

Loved this book as well... one of my favorites by Jim Butcher.

The Life of Pi by Yann Martel - 6/10 - I almost gave up reading this book, but a stopped train during a tornado warning, and nothing else to reed, got me to the interesting part. It is better not to know anything about the ending, but it was one of those endings that has an impact. If they chop off the first half of the book, I would have enjoyed it a lot more.

The Murder Of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie - 9/10

Wow. That is a twist. Though having read all the stuff about how controversial and unprecedented that novel was, I was kind of prepared. I even guessed the murderer shortly before s/he was revealed. Still mightily shocking though!

^:agree: It's not Christie's best book, IMO, but a masterpiece of sorts, anyway.

The Twentieth Wife by Indu Sundaresan - 8/10

I love Mughal history and I loved this book. Mehrunnisa is such a strong, independent character set in a time when women were considered as nothing but decorative objects. Sundaresan not only captures the mood and atmosphere of the Mughal era, but also tells a beautiful story of the relationship between Emperor Jahangir and Mehrunnisa. Based on the real life legend of the love story between Jahangir and Nur Jahan, as he later called her, this is a great read for fans of Indian or historical fiction :tu:

The Murder Of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie - 9/10
Just bought it on Kindle. Thanks for the tip. :)

Smoke and Mirrors by Neil Gaiman - 9/10

Smoke and Mirrors is a collection of short stories by Gaiman. Some of them are wonderful, some of them are disturbing, some of them are thought-provoking, some of them are impossible to understand, and some of them are all four things. I really loved it, and I would recommend it, but some of the stories were a bit (very much) too un-family-friendly for my liking. Which is why I didn't give it 10 points, and also why I doubt I will reread the whole book again. But I know I will take it out from its book shelf and read some of the stories again.

I have several favourites, and one of them, called Snow, Glass, Apples, has scarred me forever. You read the stepmother's, the queen's, perspective of the story. I don't think my future children will ever hear Snow White read to them by me. Nor do I think I will ever read it the same way. I was warned, though, and Snow, Glass, Apples will be reread.

Just bought it on Kindle. Thanks for the tip. :)

I hope you enjoy it!!

10/10 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows :sad:

Finished the first book in the Martian Tales Trilogy:
7/10 The Princess of Mars

The Protector (#4 O'Malley Series) by Dee Henderson

3 out of 5 stars
It's a fun read. I like the characters. I love the O'Malley family. The story is very predictable, though. Read the first chapter and you know who's going to get with you and what's going to happen. The good thing is I found the mystery of the story, who the arsonist is, to be a real mystery and that's the reason for reading the book.

I've read 3 of the books in the Chronicles of Narnia novel I bought 3 wks ago. Took me a bit to get used to the older English used, but so far they have all been great stories. :D


-Tibbetts

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. The book is quite emotional from begining to end. I don't remember my eyes tearing that often while reading any book, (silly, I know, :blush:). I found the story very gripping, though.

10/10

10/10 The Shining
:eeep: :eeep:

10/10 The Shining
:eeep: :eeep:Put it in the freezer.

:D

Twilight -- 6/10

New Moon -- 7/10

Small Favor by Jim Butcher. The action scenes (good, but not my favorite parts) in this one were spread throughout rather than the entire last third being one long action sequence like in the last book. :tu:

Simon Scarrow - Under The Eagle

8/10 :tu:

Harlan Coben - Caught

8/10: it was good and I didn't see the end coming, but I have read better...

Turn Coat :love:

This book was so good! I've liked all of the Dresden books, but this one was just head and shoulders above the previous books.

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman - 10/10

I loved this book, and I really liked a lot of the characters. It's been very long since the last time my favourite character in a book was the main character. :tu: I know I'll be rereading this book, and I would like to watch the TV series. I'm also trying to make my father read this book, but very discreetly so he'll end up thinking it was his idea all along. :evil: (I suspect he would like it, but if I recommended it to him he would think it was something along the lines of Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings, which were the last books I convinced him to read. :D)

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. I'm going to give it 7/10. :shrug:

Juliet, Naked - Nick Hornby

I actually enjoyed it quite a lot, it's a nice story, and in a weird way I could relate to it, haha. I love Nick!

I'm gonna give it an 8/10.

The Professor by Charlotte Bronte. The book is alright, but I see why it isn't as popular as Jane Eyre, :shrug:. 8.5/10

Airhead by Meg Cabot - 3/10

:yuhup: I usually like Meg's books, but I've either grown out of them now or this book was just plain bad. I wanted a 'light' read, but as easy-to-read as this was, I didn't like it.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. 10/10
It didn't turn out as I expected, but not in a bad way.

10/10 A Thousand Splendid Suns
Such a good book, I think I liked it more than The Kite Runner. :tu:

Finished Jim Butcher's Changes. I can finally look at The Dresden Files thread without spoiling myself! :D

Touch the Lion's Paw, by Derek Lambert. 6.5/10

A story about a retired diamonds thief that, bored with his respectable new life, plans the "robbery of the century" as a last and definitive job. It was written in 1975, so it's got a bit old-fashioned in some ways, but it's anyway entertaining to read. The style has reminded me of Frederick Forsyth, but with more humour.

1984 by George Orwell - 10/10

I finished it at camp and the moment I return to regular society I can't see anything the same way. Orwell is a genius. There's not much else to say.

8/10 Getting Lucky
My first romance novel, and it actually wasn't half bad. :agree:

Finished reading The Wheel of Time - Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan.

8/10.


-Tibbetts

DH-9/10, some parts i still don't care for, but it's a great book.

I Am Ozzy-By Ozzy 8.75/10 i've read better bio's but this one has some funny stories.

Sense and Sensibility 10/10
The book was superb. It was romantic and wonderfully comedic and satirical.

10/10
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Wonderful! I learned a lot about Chinese culture. And the symbolism is just beautiful. It makes you really think. It helps you better understand the relationship between mothers and daughters, and the life lessons are ones you'll never forget. Would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a good read. :)

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. 9/10.
It went on very slowly at the begining. And lots of things went unexplained that I almost lost interest by the time I reached half of the book. Also it didn't help that I didn't like the main character much. However, it got quite interesting half way through. I liked the adventure and the most of the characters were quite interesting. I wish it had ended in a different way though. I hoped things would get back to normal again.. :shrug:

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. 9/10.
It went on very slowly at the begining. And lots of things went unexplained that I almost lost interest by the time I reached half of the book. Also it didn't help that I didn't like the main character much. However, it got quite interesting half way through. I liked the adventure and the most of the characters were quite interesting. I wish it had ended in a different way though. I hoped things would get back to normal again.. :shrug:

Aw, really? I loved the ending. One of Gaiman's best work, in my view. You may want to try The Graveyard Book.

The last book that I read was Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
I would give it an 8 out of 10 - I think the presentation of the afterlife is not portrayed so much as something that one wants to become a part of but more of something that has to be dealt with once it arises. The scenery/atmosphere that she creates for New Orleans is breathtaking. Following Louis is not as much of an enjoyable read as following Lestat however as his character tends to mope about a lot - the upside of this is that there is a lot of philosophical and moral questions in the story that let you sit and think.

The Sea of Monsters (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, book two) - 8/10
This is such an enjoyable read! Percy is a funny narrator; I found myself giggling randomly whenever he made some witty remark. :lol: The action was well-written and the book managed to push the plot further. The cliffhanger at the end is great - I don't know how long I can wait till I borrow the next book!

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe- 8/10
I like this, but I prefer the first one

The Picture of Dorian Gray- Oscar Wilde 8/10. Quite original, but I can't say I liked it.

7/10 Dolores Clairbourne
Not my favorite King book, but my favorite King movie. :shrug:

Curfewed Night by Basharat Peer - 10/10

I don't think I shall ever forget this book. It is heart-rending, hurtful, brutally honest, emotional and beautifully written.

I've finished several novels over the past week, so, here we go! :D

The Wheel of Time - Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan. 8/10.

The following are Vatta's War novels by Elizabeth Moon:
Trading in Danger = 8/10
Marque and Reprisal = 9/10
Engaging the Enemy = 8/10
Command Decision = 7/10
Victory Conditions = 8/10


-Tibbetts

The Lost Symbol - Dan Brown - 8/10

While this is not my favorite Dan Brown book (DaVinci Code is definitely better), I did like it. Great twist near the end, though the ending was very confusing for me. But Dan Brown's books are always about codes and riddles and there were some very nice ones. A lot of suspense in the book as well, but it is definitely a page-turner. Only took me 3 days to complete!

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I know it's probably blasphemous to say, but in some ways I preferred this to the classic that inspired it, The Catcher in the Rye. :whistle: Perhaps it was just a bit more relatable to me, since I was a freshman in high school at almost the same time as the protagonist here. This was a good book, but I probably wouldn't count it among my favorites. It did have one of the loveliest quotes that I've read recently, though. Overall, :tu:

6/10 The Warlord of Mars, the third book of the Martian Tales Trilogy.
This book dragged on, all through out the series it was nothing about saving the Princess. :rolleyes: So glad to finally finish it.

To Kill A Mockingbird - 5/10. For the most part I loved it, but I think it goes overboard at times with the simplicity and the smugness. Plus, while this book spares no page space to find sympathy and understanding for the black people, the Cunninghams, the Radleys, and even the Ewells (Mayella) of the world, and to offer a brilliant and poignant critique of racial hatred, it then goes and makes sure to explicitly agree with the era's ideas of women, twice (a "wise" thing they're not allowed to serve on juries and women are hypocritical). If not for that, I would have given it an 8/10.

Ooh, I will be spamming this thread a lot this semester :lol:

Just finished A Sicilian Romance by Ann Radcliffe. I give it a 7/10 for my enjoyment, but in its construction and execution it was more like a 4/10.

It was highly (bewilderingly) episodic and it took quite a few flights into irrelevancy. The plot was driven only by the need to terrorize the heroine, who never does much at all to aid herself, relying instead mostly on the vices and graces of the male characters. What little strength there is to be found in the female characters is expressed only by their good sense in despairing of their helplessness. The author never really gives them a chance to accomplish anything, and the ending left me as incredulous as much of the beginning. The book is in the end just a silly romance as perhaps the title rightly reflects, and I wouldn't rely on it for anything but a short diversion from serious literature.

The Host - 3/10
I'm sick of the word "chagrin", reading framents instead of whole sentences, and similarities between the other wretch series by this author. :rolleyes: :grumble:

The Merchant of Death (Pendragon, Book 1) - 8/10
I really like this mostly because Bobby is more relatable than most characters. He's brave but also has his moments that makes him more human. He's also a pretty funny narrator :lol: I look forward to reading other books in the series.

I'm sick of the word "chagrin",

:rotfl:

The Host - 3/10
I'm sick of the word "chagrin", reading framents instead of whole sentences, and similarities between the other wretch series by this author. :rolleyes: :grumble:

Hear, hear! :clap:

Macbeth--8/10
(Alright, technically a play, not so much a book).

I studied it, and admittedly, I enjoyed it. It did become a little annoying in some parts, but after "digging beneath the surface", it was rather cool. :rolleyes:

Murderer: What, you egg! Young fry of treachery! :rotfl:

and similarities between the other wretch series by this author.

When I first read it I thought it was wonderful (which it could be if written by a more skilled author). But on a reread, like you said, I realised how awfully similar it is to Twilight. Too similar that I could actually replace each character of The Host by one from Twilight. ( Jacob > Ian , Jared > Edward, Sharon > Rosalie, etc.)

The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson, Book 2) - 9/10
I really enjoyed this. I was expecting to read it over the next few days, but I ended up starting last night and finishing it this morning. :whistle: Percy was hilarious, as always, and I liked seeing how he matured between the last book and this one, especially when it came to his feelings for Annabeth. :D I'm really excited to read the next one!

:huggles: for Hana. :(

Just finished A Sicilian Romance by Ann Radcliffe. I give it a 7/10 for my enjoyment, but in its construction and execution it was more like a 4/10.

It was highly (bewilderingly) episodic and it took quite a few flights into irrelevancy. The plot was driven only by the need to terrorize the heroine, who never does much at all to aid herself, relying instead mostly on the vices and graces of the male characters. What little strength there is to be found in the female characters is expressed only by their good sense in despairing of their helplessness. The author never really gives them a chance to accomplish anything, and the ending left me as incredulous as much of the beginning. The book is in the end just a silly romance as perhaps the title rightly reflects, and I wouldn't rely on it for anything but a short diversion from serious literature.

I read something else of hers and got a similar impression. She really sucks you into the story, but you still can't help but feel that the story itself isn't quite so good.

Murderer: What, you egg! Young fry of treachery!

:rotfl: My HS friends and I made an inside joke of that line.

Simon Scarrow - The Eagles Conquest

7/10

Very enjoyable sequeal.

Balzac - Peau de chagrin (I don't know the English title). I would say 7/10. Good idea for a fantastic story, but the author packed too much in it.

Hunger Games: 9.5/10

It had a perfect blend of intensity and emotion.

8/10 In the Woods by Tana French
This book really worked me up, I was looking forward to finding out one of the mysterious of this book, and it kind of left me blank. It's one of those books where you make your own speculation of what happened. I feel as though the author didn't come up with a good enough idea of what happened. :whistle: Still a good read though, I look forward to starting the next one. ;)

8/10 Shutter Island

Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins - 8.5/10

Really packs a punch, and is a memorable read. My second favourite of the trilogy.

Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Colfer - 8/10

One I've meant to read for a while. Funny, entertaining and great characters. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series now.

Last Chance Saloon, by Marian Keyes - 7/10

Yet another I've been meaning to read for ages. Not as good as her later books, but still, as always, deals with a lot more than dating and shopping. I love the message that being on your own is better than a relationship with someone who treats you badly, and that a partner's baggage doesn't mean one should excuse their bad behaviour. (Although standing up for yourself, whether to a partner, friend, family, or colleague is something that crops up a lot in Keyes' books)

Heartstone, by CJ Sansom 8.5/10

Reads very true to the Tudor era, with an intriguing plot. Maybe a bit too much to-and-fro between a few locations, but a very good read. Some interesting new characters, and the return of some old ones.

I just finished A Clockwork Orange.

I really must give this book two ratings. 7/10 for the story - it has some degree of depth to it, and a bit of understanding about psychology, but in the end it's not particularly eventful and relatively short. It does however show its character development very well, and contrary to popular belief, it is not a book about violence (which is one of the character's traits) but about transformation.

10/10 for the writing style. Since I haven't completed Ulysses, I have to say this is the single best-written and original book I've read, in large part because the author visibly came up with the entire technique on his own and hasn't been successfully copied since. This is an example of truly unique writing.

A Clash of Kings.

Sequal to a game of thrones and beings where it left off, introducing more characters and giving others bigger roles. I really liked this book, i like how you only know as much as the charecters know, nothing more, nothing less. and when you find some things out, it's pretty shocking/surprising. All the charectors for the most part are well done, you know all of their feelings and motivations. while some art it's not in a bad way it's in a way that is supposed to leave us geussing as to where their allegiances are.

9/10

To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee. 8/10.

The Jane Austen Book Club 8/10

Velocity, by Dean Koontz, 7/10

It was a good read, and quite compelling. However, I thought the villain's plot fell into place way too easily, a lot like the Joker's schemes in Dark Knight.

The Maze Runner by Dashner 10/10 for mood and suspense and like a 5/10 for plot: Very tense sci fi book, just found out it's a trilogy. It was the type of book you couldn't put down but I felt like it had a few way too big plot holes or at least things that weren't explained well enough. Which I guess was the point of a lot of it, but it was a bit overdone.

The Jane Austen Book Club 8/10
Commentary, please! I need to know! :)To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee. 8/10.Aw, why no 10/10? :sad:

Aw, why no 10/10? :sad:

It irritated me how Jean shies away from being a girl, and how she would do anything because she doesn't want her brother to call her a 'girl'. In other words, I don't agree with their definition of what a girl is. :shrug:. Besides I felt it was a little bit slow.

I like some of the other characters, though. I like Atticus, Alexandra and Maudie. Maudie is absolutely hilarious. :agree:

I like Atticus:love:
It irritated me how Jean shies away from being a girl, and how she would do anything because she doesn't want her brother to call her a 'girl'. In other words, I don't agree with their definition of what a girl is. . Besides I felt it was a little bit slow.She doesn't want to be a "proper lady" like Aunt Alexandria. Miss Maudie is a great example of the type of woman I believe Scout would grow up to be.

:love:
She doesn't want to be a "proper lady" like Aunt Alexandria. Miss Maudie is a great example of the type of woman I believe Scout would grow up to be.

Oh Scout does resign that she would have to enter this world some day. The she proceeds to label all women as hypocritical.

Sushi for Beginners, by Marian Keyes 7/10

A funny, enjoyable read, but a bit more predictable than usual, apart from one surprising development.

Paper Towns by John Green

I read the first chapter and found it nessisary to stay up late into the night to finish reading.

A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb - 7/10
Despite it's label as a YA novel, it really isn't. It's about two dead characters who are adults but stuck in teenagers' bodies. That is hardly enough basis to make it YA, IMO. Anyway, it was a very interesting take on what happens to some after their deaths. The love between the two characters was quick but actually made sense. If you felt alone for over a century and found someone who can hear and understand you perfectly, wouldn't you feel some form of attachment? To sum it up, it was a very interesting read. :)

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. 7/10

This book was a lot like The Handmaid's Tale for me. Awesome story, hated the style of writing. I understand why the author used a poetic style to the writing, but sometimes I had to go back and re-read to see what was imagined and what was happening.

A orillas del rio piedra me sente a llorar by Paulo Cohelo.

Good book. Bit cheesy , but tolerable. Very good quotes for life and a most interesting message. Definetly a most have book. 9/10

Frida by Paulo Coehlo . I thought would be more interesting. It talks about withces and wizards and the magic of the sun and the moon. But I personally found it a bit boring, way too cheesy and it lingered forever on some topics. 6/10

A Storm Of Swords.

This book is great. i really liked all of the pov's there's never really a chapter,sure some are less good than others, but i liked them all a good bit. Which is really something because the book is 923 pages long. 9.75/10

The Reckoning

Third book in the Darkest Powers series about a bunch of teenagers on the run from this cooperation. I liked the first book in the series a lot, the second to me was okay, but not a lot really happened as it was more of a book that just got the charecters where they needed to go. the thrid picks up where the second left off. i actually liked that they stayed in one place rather than ran all over, it gave time for charector development and this one actually had some cool story elements instead of the second's "We need to go here" story. but my one problem with the book was, they stayed in that place for a while with not a lont going on, sure there are things here and there, but nothing really starts to go down until about halfway through the book.

Another thing i didn't like was how open ended the book's ending was. Especially since t his is the last book in this trilogy. i know there is susposed to be another trilogy after this, but it's with different charecters set in the same universe. I like my series ending to be all tied up, maybe with some loose ends, but the main story i want done, this felt like a nother book in a series of 5 or 6 books, not the end to a trilogy

8.25

10/10 Pretty Little Liars
This is the first book of the Pretty Little Liars series. It's an easy read, but there's so much drama in it, I totally loved it. :eyebrows:

The Days - Taha Hussain. I finished part 1 and started part 2. I'm not sure what's so wonderful about it, or what makes it a very popular work. But I'm not going to judge now, with part two and three left. Anyways I'm going to give part 1: 7/10.

American Conspiracies -- Jessie Ventura -- 8/10

Very good book -- recommend it :tu:. No matter what side you're on, it's worth a read.

9/10 The Likeness by Tana French

8/10 Perfect Murder, Perfect Town

Inkheart - Cornelia Funke 8/10. A very creative idea for a book. I liked the plot, but I didn't think any of the characters were really well written, certainly not her villains. Besides I think she made it easy lots of times for her characters to get away from something, and not really in a smart way (i.e because they happened to have a knife or a gun, because their enemies were looking away, sleeping...). They didn't have much losses either, even though the conditions they were in, were supposed to be deadly.
I'm really curious about the second book because major things seemed to have been ended and resolved in the first book, and other things were so mysterious, I expect they'll be clarified in the second book.
All in all, I liked it well enough, I think it might easily appeal to book lovers, since the main characters love books so much themselves. :lol:

Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks - I loved this book and I cried at the end. I felt incredibly sorry for Stephen and I'm not sure how I feel about Isabella. I feel sorry for her, never having a decent family and running away when there is a slight chance of having one. I had to get used to the war descriptions which I'm not used to reading. It got a bit boring at times.

I felt really sorry for Weir when he got back to his family on leave and they were so disinterested. Stupid people...

From class: Fahrenheit 451 7/10

I actually loved the way Bradbury formed his story, and how descriptive he gets at parts, but then again, that actually hinders the text sometimes, in my opinion. It just gets confusing in parts. And part 3 was a complete letdown. I was expecting Clarisse to show up and for Guy to get everything he ever wanted (AKA real happiness), but no. Bradbury decided to blow up the city. Which actually seemed like a very convenient way to end the story....

On my own: The Art of Racing in the Rain, 10/10

I love this book. So much. It is the better, more mature version of Marley & Me. I would honestly recommend this book to anybody. It has some serious topics, but it's an amazing book and a wonderful story.

From class: Fahrenheit 451 7/10

I actually loved the way Bradbury formed his story, and how descriptive he gets at parts, but then again, that actually hinders the text sometimes, in my opinion. It just gets confusing in parts. And part 3 was a complete letdown. I was expecting Clarisse to show up and for Guy to get everything he ever wanted (AKA real happiness), but no. Bradbury decided to blow up the city. Which actually seemed like a very convenient way to end the story....Boo! F451 is amazing. You students always want a happy ending. There are no happy endings in life. Did you note my use of fallacies there? ;)


On my own: The Art of Racing in the Rain, 10/10

I love this book. So much. It is the better, more mature version of Marley & Me. I would honestly recommend this book to anybody. It has some serious topics, but it's an amazing book and a wonderful story.
This sounds really good. I believe I have it in my classroom library. I must read it once summer comes and I no longer have to read essays and books for school. :D

Boo! F451 is amazing. You students always want a happy ending. There are no happy endings in life. Did you note my use of fallacies there? ;)



This sounds really good. I believe I have it in my classroom library. I must read it once summer comes and I no longer have to read essays and books for school. :D


Well, I can understand your fallacy, and I realize that there is a grimness to life, but [/I]come on![/I] At least Bradbury could have given us a brief summary of what really happened to Clarisse!!!

And The Art of Racing in The Rain is absolutely phenomenal. Potter gave me a copy, and I fell in love with it.

Well, I can understand your fallacy, and I realize that there is a grimness to life, but [/i]come on![/i] At least Bradbury could have given us a brief summary of what really happened to Clarisse!!!
Well, as Potter would say, "Embrace the ambiguity." I'm betting you'll hear her say that often next year. ;)And The Art of Racing in The Rain is absolutely phenomenal. Potter gave me a copy, and I fell in love with it.Okay. It's definitely going on my To Read list.

Pssh. I still think Bradbury's done much better than Fahrenheit.

Well, this isn't the last book I've read, but it definitely deserves some publicity. 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher. 8/10. This is a book I think every teenager, and even most adults need to read. It teaches us how our actions have huge effects on other peoples' lives. So, definitely read it.

10/10 Flawless: Pretty Little Liars #2

Rich Like Us - Nayantara Sahgal

9/10 - It is easy to understand why Sahgal won the Sinclair Prize and the Sahitya Akademi Award for this book. She has this amazing talent of putting across the most complex ideas and opinions in the way of a story. This book is a snapshot of India and some of her people, before and after Independence and how the Emergency diminished if not demolished the very ideals upon which the country was founded. She writes beautifully and I only wish Sahgal is made more popular and accessible to the many book lovers who deserve to read someone of her calibre.

Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks 9/10 - This definitely lived up to the multitude of recommendations I was given for it, it makes me embarrassed I hadn't read it before. At first I wasn't sure about the 'jumping around' style but it was beautifully written and the content is just tragic. I really loved it.

Ender's Game - Orsen Scott Card

8/10. This book was written about 30 years ago, but is still so relevant, particularly for a sci-fi book.

A feast for Crows.

After a Storm of Swords, everybody tries to regroup and pick up the pieces left.

First of all, this book is a lot more slower than any of the others in the series, it takes a while for anything to to start happening, and takes a while longer for those things things to really boil over. so this book has some really dull moments. I know after A storm of Sword some sort of cool down was needed and that the pace couldn't keep up forever, but i often found myself looking to see how many pages i had left.

Another thing is this book was origonally susposed to include all of the charector pov's from the first 3 books, but it grew to be too long so 4 or 5 of the charectors were cut out and put into the upcoming 5th book.

Witrh all that said it's still a good book, there are some really cool moments in it, just not as much as in the others 8/10

Artemis Fowl - the Arctic Incident, by Eoin Colfer -8/10
A lot of fun, and the first in the series really laid the basis for the banter going on here. The plot links in very well, and the parallels with the real world are witty.


Second Glance, by Jodi Picoult - 8/10
Enjoyable ghost story/mystery. I haven't read any of her other books, but I think I'll be giving them a go after this. I was wary of some of the issues coming up in the 1930s section of the story, and was amazed to learn that it was based on fact.


The Cold Moon, by Jeffery Deaver -6/10
A few too many twists and turns, too much suspension of disbelief, for a thriller.

8/10 The Children of Hurin by JRR Tolkein

Mockingjay- by Suzanne Collins
9/10
I personally really loved this book. She does a great job at creating depth and emotion in her characters, and the plot was so unpredictable and suspenseful. The only reason I didn't give it a 10 is because I wasn't too pleased with how it ended.

Mockingjay- by Suzanne Collins
9/10
I personally really loved this book. She does a great job at creating depth and emotion in her characters, and the plot was so unpredictable and suspenseful. The only reason I didn't give it a 10 is because I wasn't too pleased with how it ended.


I recently read Mockingjay as well, and I agree. The ending was too....... ugh. I personally don't like Peeta, though. He's nice and all, but I don't think Collins should have included that epilogue. :no: Leaving it open ended (something I absolutely cannot stand) would have been the better option here. And the whole scenario about her sister......... Very upset about the ending as a whole.

Franny and Zooey by J. D. Salinger - 7/10. Brilliant structure, but a heavy read, due to all the theological and philosophical theories being put into a single character's mouth. It strongly resembles a play, and it sounds weirdly modern to me.

Children Of The Lamp -The Akhenaten Adventure

That was not an adventure. I'd be hard pressed to even find the climax in that. This is one of those series that claims to be a NY Bestseller, but no one's talking about it. There's a good reason they're not. 4/10

The Other Countess, by Eve Edwards, 7/10
A sweet story, but I think the main characters weren't believable for the time. I liked the characters, but they just didn't ring true to the era they were in. Some of the minor characters seemed a lot more credible for the sixteenth century.

Cross Bones, by Kathy Reichs, 6/10

It's been ages since I've read one of Reich's books, and I'd really forgotten how different Brennan of the books is from Brennan of the tv series, Bones, even though the series is "based on the books".
I enjoyed the writing style, it's very relatable, even when it gets technical. I think it veered a bit much into daVinci code territory, and that whole area seems a bit overdone in fiction. I think the ending was a bit of a cop-out, too, but in hindsight, it was probably to be expected.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner 8/10

I liked the pace of this book - I felt I always wanted to know more. The only thing that disappointed me is that it left it so you feel you need to read the sequel to understand more about the situation. Good and bad that.

Marley and Me- I'd spoil the book if i were to give a review. it's a pretty good book though 9/10

The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King -- 8.5/10

This is one good mystery thriller book by her -- that involves her own character Mary Russell working with Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. She keeps up the pace pretty well and does a good job on the characters' characterization.

The Forgotten Garden, by Kate Morton, 8/10

A beautiful story, and I loved the way the different strands from the past and present tied together so well. One or two discoveries were a little too convenient, but I loved the way a minor detail became so central in shaping the characters' lives, and the entire story from then on.

Three Ghost Stories - Charles Dickens. I really had high expectations for this book. The first story was okay, and I thought the second one was somewhat ridiculous, the third was the one I enjoyed most, even if didn't make much sense either. Going to give it 6.5/10.

The Hunger Games- by Suzanne Collins: 9/10
A well-paced science-fiction story about a rather...corrupt society in a country called Panem. Here there are twelve districts, and each year every district randomly chooses one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 called Tributes to fight to death with the other players. A wonderful, action-packed story. Highly recommended. Note that it can be a bit violent at times; nothing too bad, though.

9/10 Darkly Dreamling Dexter

Marley and Me- I'd spoil the book if i were to give a review. it's a pretty good book though 9/10
I cried so much when I read this book!

Last book I read was Black House- Stephen King and Peter Straub. 7/10
It wasn't as good as the Talisman imo

7/10 Faithful Place - Tana French
I'm not sure on this one. There wasn't as much suspense as the first and second. :shrug:

Nighttime is my time - mary Higgins Clark - 8/10

Pretty good book by Clark. Though it isn't my favorite from her. But it leaves you guessing until the big reveal. It is a basic Who-Done-It story, with a good storyline. I totally didn't guess who the killer was, which is actually a plus for me.

Heat Wave -- Richard Castle ( yea the same one from the tv show :lol: ) -- 8/10

Pretty good book and worth the read. The writing is decent enough and the pacing is ok too. Reads like the tv show itself for the most part.

Heat Wave -- Richard Castle ( yea the same one from the tv show :lol: ) -- 8/10

Pretty good book and worth the read. The writing is decent enough and the pacing is ok too. Reads like the tv show itself for the most part.

Really?! Sounds like it could be a good tie-in, if it's well written.

Pompeii, by Robert Harris, 9/10

Set in the couple of days before and during the eruption of Vesuvius. I thought this was a compelling read, and the tension was really in knowing what the characters did not, and in hoping for the characters I liked (at least some of them) to survive the disaster. And I was impressed all over again by the achievements of Roman architecture and engineering, and shocked by the casual attitude to cruelty of the time.

The Days (part 1&2) - Taha Hussain. 6/10. I never read a biography of which the main focus is the most horrible aspects of absolutely everything in life, that makes everything seem a hundred times worse than it is. I just disliked this book and I'm grateful we won't have to read the last part anytime soon, :no:.

The Music Room by Namita Devidayal - 8/10

This book is a nostalgic exercise for both the author and the reader, as the story unfolds not just as a tale of guru-sishya (Teacher-student) relationships but also a peek into that glorious, unending world of Indian classical music. The second half and 'climax' of the book was a bit of a downer and that's what makes the book stop at being just good and not great.

The Scarlet Letter- 10/10

I read it because it got such horrible reviews on this site but I have to say I don't understand what that was all about. It's very intense, psychologically interesting and downright fascinating from a religious standpoint. I really can't say anything bad about it and it seems to me people were exaggerating a great deal when reviewing this book. It isn't boring, tedious or annyoing in any way, IMO and it deals with something which is still very much an issue even in the modern society. I like the characters too and I think it's amazing that you can create such tension by using only four characters. In conclusion, I don't get the discontent.

The Princess Bride- I finally got to reading the book after seeing the movie like a dozen times. i think i would have enjoyed the book more had a not seen the movie, but the movie is really faithfull. 8/10

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri 10/10

The novel describes the struggles and hardships of a Bengali couple who immigrate to the United States to form a life outside of everything they stop.
The story begins as Ashoke and Ashima leave Calcutta, India and settle in Central Square, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Through a series of errors, their son's nickname, Gogol, becomes his official birth name, an event which will shape many aspects of his life. From Wikipedia

I absolutely adore this book. Being the daughter to immigrant parents, I can relate to the cultural wall between us and our parents. Lahiri excellently describes the nostalgia of leaving one culture behind in order to adapt to another, and the struggle of finding your identity. Try it and you might be surprised.

'Zastrozzi' by Percy Bysshe Shelley: 6/10.

Very, very weird little book Shelley wrote when he was only 18. A prime example of the completely over-the-top gothic novel.

10/10 Perfect: Pretty Little Liars #3

The Crucible :tu: Enjoyed reading it with my students. Will definitely teach it again next year.

The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde - 8/10

Sheer lunacy. I look forward to reading the next in the series, although the ending was a bit of a let down. Heh. Plock, plock, plock.

So, about a year late, I finished The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. I won't rate it (mostly because it needs another reread first), but I've written down a few thoughts on it, in spoiler tags.


I really liked this book as a Wheel of Time book. It's slightly different from the others in writing style, but not so much that it feels wrong to read it, and it's also less different than I expected. The only thing I can complain about regarding writing style is certain words that were overused - as in, they do not quite fit into the WoT universe and is seldom used in that context in the previous books, and therefore feel wrong and seem to appear much too frequent, but I would not have said that they did if it were in another book (or perhaps world). One of these words (I don't think there were many, so it's not a big complaint) is random. I'm sorry, but I can't imagine Gareth Bryne saying random! That was not the only time the word was used and it felt a bit off to me, but as I said, it's not a big deal. Neither is Min being described as wearing trousers - I can't remember seeing that word in the books before, it's always been breeches (I don't know what the difference is between breeches and trousers, if there is any) - but I found it a bit annoying, even if it was only in the prologue (after that, she wears breeches), and it's not really important, just me being weird. :)

Also, before reading GS, I noticed some people saying Mat wasn't written quite right. At first I couldn't see what they meant, but in the chapter Night in Hinderstap, Mat did, said and thought some things that felt wrong and out of character. There were also some of his lines later that felt a little bit cringeworthy, but that was also the case for some of the other characters, and I have also seen it in the books Jordan wrote before he passed away, so I don't think it matters too much. And, from what I've heard, Sanderson listened to the complaining fans, and has made Mat more in-character in Towers of Midnight. I can't say my opinion on that yet though, as ToM has not even arrived in the bookstore here yet. :(

Also, Sanderson's writing style differs from Jordan in that he is not quite as descriptive. He still has descriptions (and lots and lots of them), but doesn't go on for too long as is IMO the case at some points in the books Jordan wrote alone. Which is a good thing. I think.

I can also see what people mean when they say Verin is awesome! She's not my favourite character, but she was definitely moved very much up on the list after A Visit from Verin Sedai. Though I knew before reading GS that she was a Darkfriend (O SPOILERy internet :sigh:), I was completely taken aback by her conversation and actions in Egwene's room. My first thought when she sat there was "get out of there, Egwene! Run, RUN!", but that thought soon flew away and got replaced as I was comepletely drawn into Verin's tale. And that was a serious flaw in the Dark One's oaths! Though I saw a discussion on a WoT forum not long ago about how the Three Oaths are also seriously flawed, as they say "speak no word that is not true", which does not necessarily cover writing and other means of communications.

Back to Verin for a short comment: When I think about it, I did suspect Verin in the early books (especially when she was hiding in Emond's Field when Perrin was fighting there), and I never laid that suspicion completely behind me. It faded, yes, but I could never quite forget it.

Also, Crazy Theory Time! Though, it's not really a theory, just a feeling I can't quite shake off after reading the GS prologue: Lan is really Demandred. :scared: :sigh: I can't stop thinking about it. :sad: I don't actually think he is, but I it's sort of a shadow hanging over me that won't go away completely. Or, as I said when I first voiced my suspicion: It's like hot chocolate after a snow bath; you still feel cold inside. I really hope it's not true, because that would completely destroy my sanity.

I'd heard mostly good things about The Gathering Storm, and several people have said I'd probably enjoy it, and they were right. I had quite high expectations (especially considering my thoughts on And Another Thing... by Eoin Colfer (http://www.shelfari.com/books/5262114/And-Another-Thing-/reviews/1599109)*), but this book was a lot better than expected, and very welcome to stand among my other Wheel of Time books. :agree:

Now I'm wondering what I'm going to do on the reading front, as I don't want to move away from the WoT world before reading Towers of Midnight, which hasn't arrived yet. The bookstore sent me a text message on Tuesday saying I could come and pick it up, and I got really excited and happy and decided to go to town after school for it, before remembering I hadn't brought my wallet. But then, two minutes later, I discovered my wallet-worries were unnecessary, as I got another text, saying ToM hadn't arrived after all, and that they were sorry for sending the first message. :sigh: I'm going to take a trip to the bookstore on either Friday or Monday to check what the status for ToM really is. I hope it's on its way, because I can't stand not reading at least a chapter in a fiction book every night! :yuhup:


*I just noticed I mentioned Sanderson's foreword to GS in that review, I'd forgotten that. :tu:

The Crucible :tu: Enjoyed reading it with my students. Will definitely teach it again next year.

BEST PLAY EVER. BETTER THAN SHAKESPEARE. :clap: Thank you for choosing that book for us.... I just wish Abigail would have gotten a horrible, gruesome punishment.... Like death..... :)

Thank you for choosing that book for us.... And you gave me so much grief for not choosing The Scarlet Letter. :p
I just wish Abigail would have gotten a horrible, gruesome punishment.... Like death..... Wasn't she so much fun to hate, though? :lol:

I finished The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman early this morning. I really, really liked it, and I suspect very strongly that my brother will find it under the tree this Christmas. I think he's old enough to handle it, and I'll be reading it to him, so we can talk about it if it gets too scary. (And I want a excuse to reread it as soon as possible! :D) Also, I liked that all the ghosts in the book were kind (if weird and unique :lol:) people, which I think will help children who read the book to be less scared of ghosts.

But I'm not looking forward to reading the end to my brother, because I'll probably start crying again, just like I did tonight. It was so beautiful, so sad, so touching - and, I have no doubt this played some part in my crying, it was 5 am and I was really tired. :lol:

Also, I thought it was so much fun when Scarlett came back and Bod didn't know what to do. (I knew she'd come back, Gaiman is too good an author to just put someone in for only a chapter pretty early in the book and not get back to her later.) It was really sad when Silas made her forget everything. :sad:

And I liked that Mr. Frost turned out to be the man Jack. I suspected that there was more to him than the very nice and almost confused-sounding Mr. Frost, but I didn't think he'd be the man Jack until he took Bod up the stairs and insisted they should go alone, without Scarlett. That reminded me about Nagini disguised as Bathilda Bagshot in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which was what gave Mr. Frost away for me. :lol:

I'm looking forward to reading it again with my brother, 9 out of 10.

A comment on the translation, as I read it in Norwegian: This could have been done better. All the names that were translated were done well, and those that weren't translated worked, too (except I wish Nobody had been translated into Norwegian, instead of staying English, but I was okay with it, since Bod still worked as a nickname), but some of the sentences were really weird to me, and sometimes I was 99% sure what they had been in English originally, because no one would ever come up with such a sentence in Norwegian if they were not trying to translate something from a foreign language. Also, the comma use was weird in some places. It would've worked in English, but in Norwegian, it was just wrong and very off.

But it's very far from the worst translation I've seen, 7.5/10 for that. (Though I haven't read the book in English, so I can't say very much about the translation compared to the original book, just about the way the language worked, and the grammar use.)

I'll probably continue listening to Mr. Gaiman himself reading the book before Christmas, he's really good at reading out loud. :agree: I've only heard the first chapter (http://www.mousecircus.com/videotour.aspx) until now, but it was great.

Just re-read “Never Let me go” by Kazuo Ishiguro, on account of the film coming out shortly. I have to say I enjoyed it a bit more on a second read.

My only issue with it is the writing style; a type of recall narration. It is a bit meandering for me to be truly comfortable, as Kathy (narrator) struggles to recall she jumps back and forth in her memory, although this is compelling and interesting her detours had me reading quickly as if I was afraid she would forget her initial point.

All in all I like the characters, the plot and the unanswered questions. 7/10

Neil Gaiman, Anansi Boys. 8/10 Nice reading, but after I finished, I had the impression of having already read some books like this...

The Vampire Diaries: Volume 1 - The Awakening: 9/10

Seasons of Grace 3: The Telling by Beverly Lewis 9/10

I think it was one of the best endings to one of her series.

Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
As with The Gathering Storm, I won't rate it. I can't decide which of the two I like better, because I liked most of GS, while ToM was a bit slow at times but had a great ending.

I liked the ending of GS too, and I actually thought that I wouldn't be disappointed if the series ended there. It would be up to the readers to decide whether the Dark or the Light won, and how everything would end, but it felt like an ending that could stay like that, even if there was a lot of loose ends that had not been tied up. Towers of Midnight, on the other hand, ended in a way that almost made me shout out so loud that Sanderson would actually hear it, that he'd have to "Give me A Memory of Light! NOW!!", which of course isn't possible. I'm looking forward to the beginning of 2012, though.

Oh, and I must mention my favourite part! Or, I think it's my favourite part, but favourite as in the best written and most touching and moving and sad part of the book: Aviendha in Rhuidean. I cried. I was terrified. And sad. Will it be this bad, even if the Light wins? I hope (and think) that Aviendha can change it, but while reading that, I felt... I can't quite find the words. It was horrible and heartbreaking.

It also hints that the title A Memory of Light describes what happens after the Last Battle, and not the situation during the fighting.


Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
I won't rate this one either. I liked it, but I thought it was quite boring at some places, and that it lacks something that all other Gaiman books I've read have. I still think it's brilliant, and I still loved it, but there was something missing.

But then the last 100 pages or so came, and I could forgive and ignore all it's faults. I don't just love it, I think it's perfect. Not as a book, but as something I needed right now. I thought, in the middle of the book, that this was the kind of book that I'll read, and then I'll hide it on my shelf for ten years or so, before I'll read it again, when I've forgotten all details.

How wrong I was. It's the kind of book I need to reread every year. Not because it's a great fantastic superperfect book, but because it means something to me. Close to the end, I realised that something had changed, inside me. I'm not sure what, but it's a good change. I know a lot of people (including me) say that this and this and this book changed their lives, but this is different. It's the life-changing book for me. Which is what I mean when I say it's perfect; it's perfect for me, and my life right now. And that's also why I can't rate it.

I'm looking forward to all my future rereads of Anansi Boys. In fact, I almost can't wait, but I have so many other books I need to read, I can't read it again right now.

The Vampire Diaries: Volume 2 - The Struggle - 9/10

Side Jobs -- Jim Butcher -- a solid 9/10 here from me.

It's a good book and well worth a read :).

Crooked Little Vein- Warren Ellis
9/10

it ain't no Transmet, but it's still awesome. :D

4/10 The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold

I enjoyed The Lovely Bones, but this one was no where near as good. It definitely dragged on and didn't click well with me. :shrug:

Raise High The Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction - 5/10. It was very difficult to read - obscure, scattered, basically no story at all. But I suspect this is due mainly to it flying over my head.

The Vampire Diaries Part 3 - The Fury - 7.5/10

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams — I will give this 10/10 because it has time machines and aliens* and ghosts and hypnosis and possession and a crazy but hilariously funny detective and a confused person and a spaceship. This, with Douglas Adams brilliant and hysterical writing and choice of words, is basically the receipt for a good book.


*(My 10 might also have something to do with the fact that it supports my theory that every single good fictional book in history has minimum one time machine and one alien. There are exceptions, of course, but most good books do, even if you don't realise it at the first, or third, or even hundredth read. Or maybe I just see things.)

The Winter Ghosts by Kate Mosse

An atmospheric ghost story, set in the late 1920s and once again crossing over into Mosse's favourite theme: the massacres against the Cathar community in the Languedoc region of south-west France in the 12th and 13th centuries.

I worked out the identity of 'the winter ghosts' half way through the book and could tell exactly what was going to happen. However, the somewhat cliched premise is totally redeemed by Mosse's wonderfully evocative prose. :) She can really, really write about France and its people. :D :tu:

And the story that the mystery comes wrapped in is very poignant and moving. The hero's grief for his dead brother, killed during World War 1, is what gives this novel its real emotional punch.

9/10

The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler - 7.5/10

This is an extraordinarily well-written book. I'm not too sure about the plot towards the end of the book, but I'd recommend it any day if just to experience beautiful writing about simple things.

The Metamorphosis by Kafka
This was a very sad little book. I enjoyed it quite a bit, but it made me sad.

House Rules by Jodi Picoult -
a definite 10/10, loved every page of it!

Northanger Abbey - Jane Austen. I'm going to give it 8/10. I definitely enjoyed it, but it's not my favourite Austen book, just as Catherine Morland isn't my favourite Austen-heroine. There are some things in this book which I didn't exactly like, the 'general' as a character being one of them.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. 5 out 5 stars. I loved it. I love the way it was written like reading journal entries sort of. I really enjoyed the whole story and connected with Melinda.

Angels and Demons - Dan Brown: 9/10

The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger - Stephen King: 7.5/10

Mrs. Dalloway - Virginia Woolf. 6/10.

The 39 Clues #5: In Too Deep

That was such a big improvement over the fourth one I can't wait to read further. 9/10.

Stargirl - Jerry Spinelli. This was a very easy read, I didn't put it down yesterday before it was finished. It tells a really cute story. I would've given it a 10 except that the writing style isn't that good. It also got quite unrealistic at some points. I enjoyed it, thanks goes to not_a_human who recommended it to me! :D

8.5/10

Strangers on a train, by Patricia Highsmith; 7/10.

Quite an interesting reading. I expected more of a pure thriller, but the book also gets quite deep into the psychology of both main characters and that, though making it less action-packed than expected, gives it interest.

The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three - Stephen King: 9/10

Much better than the first.

A Brutal Telling by Louise Penny: 9/10

If you like mysteries, read this -- randomly picked it up in the book store and it was a really relaxed but fascinating read.

10/10 Pretty Little Liars: Unbelievable #4

The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three - Stephen King: 9/10

Much better than the first.


Certainly my favorite out of the series; V: Wolves of the Calla is a close second.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater: 5/5.

I loved the fact that Maggie showed both sides of the story by alternating between Sam and Grace's point of few. I loved seeing their relationship and everything around it and the whole story just sucked me in. I could feel everything - the love, the longing, but also the sadness. I was kinda sad when I was finished. I want more!

I can't wait till my copy of Linger comes in (I'm so glad that I ordered it before I even read Shiver :D)