Book Review: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

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I read this book for the 2014 Book Genre Challenge!

What to say about this book? I feel like if I had read this book before reading 'The Mortal Instruments' I would like it better than I do now (and if I read TMI later, I would prefer 'The Infernal Devices').

I liked the overall story, I thought the whole setting was fascinating, the whole steampunk vibe to it is great, I like the period (which was not very well explored in the book), and the whole mystery around what Tessa really is. It is a fascinating tale, set in a fascinating universe. I love the Shadowhunting world, the Nephilim, the vampires and warlocks, the whole thing.

However, this story did not manage to hold my attention for too long. I guess it was because it kept reminding me of The Mortal Instruments.

Tessa. I liked her at first, but then I didn't. Her blind devotion to her brother was annoying, she had only one thought in her mind: rescue her brother. It didn't matter things were far more serious and important than she thought they were, she wanted her brother. Other people were being selfish by 'getting in the way' of her finding her brother.

Will Herondale. Will Herondale is Jace Herondale. Jace Herondale is Will Herondale. Again, if I had read this book before TMI I could like Will. But I didn't. Not only he is exactly like Jace is, he is also a very selfish character who says the most hurtful things to people only because he himself doesn't want to be hurt. He is reckless, letting the people who love him worried, he jumps head first into danger, and sometimes (most of the times) treats people really badly. His only redeeming feature, in my opinion, is how he cares for Jem.

Jem. I liked Jem. He was cute, calm, and he cared about others. Unfortunately, I couldn't help but feel he was only there to give Will someone to care about (other than Tessa) and to be part of the forever present love triangle.

And, as usual, I really liked Magnus Bane. He is a great and sparkly character.

I don't know if I will read the other books. I got curious to know Tessa's background story and how it will come into play in the second book. Also, I want to know what will happen to Jem (even though I know what will happen by the end of the books and SPOILERS his role in The Mortal Instruments series SPOILERS).

Rating: 3/5

Book Review: The Diviners by Libba Bray

Goodreads

I read this book for the 2014 Book Genre Challenge!

I was surprised by how much I liked this book. I liked the narrative, the writing style, the characters, the setting, and the overall story.

What I didn't like:

The hint at love triangle. I think love triangles are completely unnecessary and are getting cliché nowadays. Almost every single YA book has a love triangle. I want to see how the Mabel situation will be solved in the next book.

What I liked:

I loved the way the book was written, I really liked the prose, the description, how we get to know things. I liked how things were explained to us, how the narrative made certain aspects of the book feel so real and how the suspense was kept throughout the book.

I liked the characters, they were well develop, all of them with their special stories and mysteries surrounding them, how some of them were explained, and how some were carefully not explained so we were left wanting and waiting for answers.

Overall, a great read!

Rating: 5/5

Book Review: The Wide Window by Lemony Snicket

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This will be more of a collection of quotes I liked than a proper review. 
I love 'A Series of Unfortunate Events'. All the books follow more or less the same pattern and they are very easy and quick to read. These characteristics do not make the books less enjoyable. It is so nice to re-read books from your childhood and notice all the little things I didn't notice the first time or was too young to understand. 
I've always had a particular liking for this one, I don't exactly know why. I believe it might be because of the small murder mystery it presents and its lovely twist. 
Here are some quotes that I really enjoyed:
• "Their adventure would be exciting and memorable like being chased by a werewolf through a field of thorny bushes at midnight with nobody around to help you."
• You can see at once why keeping things in perspective rarely works very well, because it is hard to concentrate on somebody being eaten by a bear when you are staring at your own ugly pimple."
• If you are allergic to a thing, it is best not to put that thing in your mouth, particularly if the thing is cats."
• "Stealing, of course, is a crime, and a very impolite thing to do. But like most impolite things, it is excusable under certain circumstances. Stealing is not excusable if, for instance, you are in a museum and you decide that a certain painting would look better in your house, and you simply grab the painting and take it there. But if you were very, very hungry, and you had no way of obtaining money, it might be excusable to grab the painting, take it to your house, and eat it."

Rating: 4/5

Book Review: The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

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First, a confession that I'm sure nobody will be surprise to hear: I only bought this book because J. K. Rowling wrote it. Will the fact that she wrote it have any effect on my review? No, absolutely not. I review the books, not the authors. 
The book follows the life of private detective Cormoran Strike. Strike is hired to find out what really happened to Lula Landry, a model who is believed to have committed suicide. Her brother doesn't believe his sister would have killed herself and he is willing to pay for Strike to discover the truth. Strike desperately needs the money, seeing his financial, professional, and private lives are currently very chaotic, so he accepts the job. 
I liked the book but it was nothing special. It was a common murder mystery, following the basic murder mystery plot. What I liked most was the insights to the characters' lives and personalities, why they got where they were and how they did so. There was good character development in the book, even though sometimes I felt the characters were behaving a little out of character. However, you can see how they grew, if only a little, as the book progressed. 
I admit I had my suspicions about the killer - and they were proved right. I don't think it is because the book gave much away (there was enough clues to pierce it all together if you really wanted to, but nothing blatantly obvious). I believe it was because I have read enough murder mysteries to see a pattern. I also have to admit that the book was well thought when it came to the killer and how everything took place. 
I believe the book could have used a little more action. The investigation was good, but it could have been better. 
This book is the perfect choice for those who are looking for a light reading or for something entertaining.

Rating: 3/5

Book Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

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I picked up this book mainly for the cover. It had been on my to-read list for a while, but the cover was really something (I have this cover).

This book tells the story of Jacob, a boy who grew up with his grandfather telling exciting, and most definitely untrue, stories. They were stories about a home for children where the grandfather had spent some time after his family was killed during the war. Jacob loved this stories but, as he grew older, he thought his grandfather was making them up and stopped believing in them. One day, something tragic happens and Jacob has to review his opinions. Maybe those stories were true after all. So he and his father go searching for this old home and for the woman, Miss Peregrine, who used to run it. The things Jacob finds might not be the ones he was expecting to find.

At first, this book managed to scare me quite a lot. It was weird, creepy, and I was dying to know what was going to happen with the characters. However, as the story progressed, I thought the rhythm of the narrative was somehow different. And not in a good way. The end of the book brought back the initial narrative style, but it ended too fast for me. And it left too many things unexplained.

I loved the pictures, I think they were an awesome complement to the narrative. It is quite amazing how the author managed to build the entire story around this pictures, made them fit so well into the narrative. To me, my experience of reading this book would not be the same if there were no pictures.

Jacob, as a character, didn't interest me much. He was brave, trying to find the truth about his grandfather, helping his new-found friends, and giving up a lot (even if he could not see it) to make sure they were safe. I still think the secondary characters were my favorites.

I am looking forward to the second book!

Rating: 4/5

Book Review: The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

Goodreads

It was an amazing read and, even though I didn't love it, I really enjoyed reading it and getting to know more about the character. 
We get to know Kvothe, an epic figure, theme of legends and fables, who is hiding from the glory of his past, accompanied by his student. As a recorder arrives at the village he resides, looking for him and determined to write his story, and as his past seem to be catching up with him, Kvothe decides it is time for his story to be told in his own terms and by his own voice. 
This way, we follow him through his childhood and university years, facing the tragic death of his family and the need to find out more about the creatures who killed them and how this affects his life, going with him through some of his classes and his hardships, and sharing with him his love for music. Through his story and his eyes we see how his reputation started to be constructed and how the myths surrounded him started to come to life. 
A great High Fantasy book, The Name of the Wind will transport you to a world where magic is real and the most exciting things can happen. If you are looking for a good fantasy book, I recommend checking 

out this one!

Rating: 5/5

Top 13 books of 2013

1. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
2. Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury
3. Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
4. Artemis Fowl  by Eoin Colfer
5. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
6. A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin
7. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
8. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
9. Looking for Alaska by John Green
10. The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan
11. Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
12. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
13. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss