Here comes the Unconsecrated

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The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie RyanThe Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
The Forest of Hands and Teeth # 1
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Number of pages: 308
My copy: ebook from Amazon Kindle Store

In Mary’s world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent. And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth. But, slowly, Mary’s truths are failing her. She’s learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future—between the one she loves and the one who loves her. And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded in so much death?

* * *

Altogether now: FINALLY. I finally got to read this book.

I’ve been trying to think of how I should dive into reviewing The Forest of Hands and Teeth, because I really have no idea how. I guess I’ll jump into it?

I’ve read a lot of reviews about this book and all of them told me to waste no time and read it. I was curious because I’ve never really read a book with zombies in it. Zombies are kind of a joke to us, you see, for several reasons: friends from NaNoWriMo use zombies (together with ninjas) to propel our plot forward when we have run out of things to write for our 50,000 word novels, and Plants vs. Zombies. I’ve never really thought that there’s a zombie book out there, and YA, no less. I’m curious.

Interestingly, the word “zombie” was never used in this book. In Mary’s world, the zombies are known as the Unconsecrated. There was little explanation on how their world became that, so the reader would just have to accept the truths that was presented in the context of the book. You can’t go near the fence. The Unconsecrated thirst for blood. The Sisterhood protects the village. You have to follow or else you’re dead.

But after Mary’s mom falls to the hands of the Unconsecrated and everyone leaves her behind, Mary starts questioning these “truths”. She wonders of the outside world, if there was an outside world at all. When things fall, she and her friends had no choice but to get out of the village and try to see if they can survive outside.

This book had a generally depressing mood, so it’s not a  book I’d recommend to be read when you’re already down. There’s a feeling of doom in the story, and you just know that not all of them will make it out alive. Even so, I couldn’t help but be sucked into the story and hope for more revelations about why the world came to that, and hope for the best for the main characters.

I had mixed feelings after I finished reading this — it was really good, but it was also very depressing that I don’t really know if I really like it — after all, I choose fluff over anything. :P But it is one of the best books I’ve read this year for sure. I’m not sure if I’d like to re-read it as often as I do for the other books I like. Did that make sense?

Oh, and the sequel to this book, entitled Dead Tossed Waves is coming on March 9, and I can’t wait to get to read that, too. I hope it sheds more light on the other unanswered questions in the first book. In the meantime, stay within the fences. :P

Rating: [rating=4]

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Hush, Hush

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Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
Hush, Hush # 1
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Number of pages: 391

For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She’s never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora’s not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can’t decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen – and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

* * *

I first learned about this book while I was on the MRT. As the train passed by SM Megamall, I saw a huge billboard with Twilight on one half, and I thought it was just another Vampires vs. Werewolves thing. But instead, it asked, “Are you on Team Vampire or Team Angels?” Then I saw the cover, which, as everyone says, is one of the really good covers of YA books lately.

It only took me until now to actually sit down and read the book, since I’ve been wary of Twilight like novels ever since I finished reading Breaking Dawn (oh the horror), so I’m not too keen on reading stories about a girl who can’t stop being attracted to a guy who she knows is bad for her.

But eventually this book found its way to me, and last weekend got me reading this after I finished reading the last book I read. And what do you know — I finished it within two days.

I guess I really can’t stop comparing this book with Twilight because they have the same elements inside: girl gets attracted to a guy who has a “bad” side, and everyone’s telling them not to get together. Still the girl gets together with the guy, who turns out to be supernatural, and more or less wants to kill the main character. Then there’s the climax, and then more stuff happens and the guy and the girl end up together. It’s basically the same.

Here are the main differences I saw in this novel from Twilight:

  • The main character is not weak, or totally helpless or stupid. Sure, Nora made a lot of wrong moves in the story, but at least she had a personality. Bella Swan irritated me from the start, but Nora Grey had more spunk than Bella. She had her own looks, her own personality and she actually resisted Patch almost all throughout the novel until the end. Plus, Nora had actual, normal friends, who are not another supernatural creature. :P
  • The main guy is not really that attractive. Well, at least for me. I admit to liking Edward Cullen on Twilight…but Patch is different. There is something seemingly sexy about him, but I wasn’t attracted. Of course we know what he is from the start, based from the cover, but that’s it. It’s not that I don’t like him; I just don’t feel him that much. He is kind of stalker-ish, but I really didn’t get to know him that well in the story, except on how Nora described him. But at least he didn’t have “marble arms.”
  • The story had a climax. Well, at least some kind of climax. I found myself holding my breath on the high part of the story. The thing with having a first person story is that when the narrator blacks out, all we can see is what happens after. But at least this one had a lot of action on the climax, which I really appreciated.

It’s actually a lot better than Twilight, although the ending felt a bit anticlimactic. But the concept is good, and I was in the dark until the last part of the story when the reveal is done — I actually thought it was the best friend for a while. It’s not my favorite book, but I’m not sorry I read it. And I’m curious to know what the sequel, Crescendo will be about.

Rating: [rating=2]

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Five Things I Can’t Live Without (Holly Shumas)

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Five Things I Can't Live Without by Holly ShumasOn paper, Nora’s life looks perfect. She’s moving in with her boyfriend Dan, she has a stable job and a great group of friends. But she’s stuck in what she refers to as “meta-life,” the plight of overthinking and second guessing to the point of self-sabotage. One day at work, Nora decides to thwart her meta-life by following her instincts. In what feels like a moment of revelation, she quits her job. Immediately, her meta-life goes into overdrive: What on earth was she thinking–and what is she going to do now? Fortunately, when a friend asks Nora to rewrite her Internet dating profile, she realizes that not only is she good at it, but she really enjoys it. Billing herself as a Cyrano de Bergerac for the lovelorn, Nora finally begins to find professional success. But soon, Nora’s meta-life has latched onto the question she’s asked so many clients: What are the five things she can’t live without? Is her flourishing business one of them? Is Dan? With each new client and each step she takes in her own relationship, she must confront her biggest demon–her self-sabotaging “meta-life.” But will she be able to slay it forever?

A good chick-lit is always a thrill to read, but finding good chick-lit is a hit-or-miss, at least for me. I never really liked reading chick-lit with too much sex, so I was wary of picking up anything without checking its reviews and such.

The blurb of this book was interesting from the start, which caused me to get this book. I’m a lot like Nora, the main character of this book, who lives in “meta-life” half the time. There was a solid cast of characters behind Nora, not to mention all her “clients”.

It was a fun read really…but it didn’t really work for me.

I don’t know. It was interesting at first, but as I read the book, I started getting disinterested with the book. I wanted to get to the point of the book, and when I read the blurb again, that’s when I realized that the point of the book was for Nora to figure out what were the five things she couldn’t live without. Duh.

But that’s the thing. I didn’t feel the need for Nora to find out those five things. There wasn’t anything pressing in the story for Nora to find that, except that she was asking them to her clients — which didn’t really show in the story, really, except for the profiles. If anything, Nora was more concerned with her boredom with her “work”, and her relationship with Dan. I would have found some interest if Nora struggled with something else like her weight and wonder if she would need to take some weight loss supplements, but there wasn’t much. Nora seemed pretty normal and okay save for her job that it was almost boring…except for some fun with Nora’s friends, especially Larissa.

I liked the ending of the story, though, with all that Nora learned from her overthinking and her experiences. However, it just wasn’t life-changing or earth-shattering for me. It was a sort of enjoyable read, but not exactly something I’d like to re-read.

Rating: [rating=2]
→ A miss, unfortunately. I was hoping to relate to this one, but I didn’t feel too much sympathy for Nora in this story. Might be a good read for others, but not for me.

2010 Challenge Status:
* Book # 9 out of 100 for 2010

→ Get Five Things I Can’t Live Without by Holly Shumas on Amazon.com
→ Holly Shumas’ website

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A Trip to Neverland

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One of my favorite cartoons when I was a kid was the anime Peter Pan, as pictured above. I remember watching that show religiously in ABS-CBN everyday, and especially the extended story, the one with Luna and the mirror and the dark queen. Anyone who was a child during the 90’s surely knows this show, right?

I know not all of that cartoon came from the book, but I was curious to read the book nonetheless. What’s cool with classics is that there are free ebooks around, so I downloaded an ebook of Peter Pan and started reading it in between Persuasion.

My first impression with Peter Pan is that it was an easier read compared to the other classics I have read. I didn’t have to read it slowly to understand the text, unlike how I read the other books. There was a certain playfulness in the way the book was written that made it fit the characters and the nature of the story, of making believe. I found the characters endearing, especially Tootles, in all his awkwardness.

However…I don’t know, it’s just an okay book for me. I liked it a lot, but that’s it. It didn’t give me a huge sense of amazement, unlike when I read an Austen or To Kill a Mockingbird. Maybe it’s because I read it from an ebook? Or maybe because I need to believe in fairies and Neverland more? Or maybe it was because I was trying to make sense of the story too much — is Neverland all in their imaginations? Is Peter just a figment of all of their imaginations, including Mr. and Mrs. Darling?

Yeah, I probably did too much over thinking again with this. :P I don’t mean to be cynical, maybe a re-read would change my mind. Or maybe, Peter Pan is the type of book that I’d really rather watch on TV.

Rating: [rating=3]

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Percy and Harry

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ALTERNATE TITLE: How I tried to separate Percy Jackson from Harry Potter ;)

PThe Lightning Thiefercy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school…again. And that’s the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy’s Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he’s angered a few of them. Zeus’s master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect.

Now Percy and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus’s stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. But to succeed on his quest, Percy will have to do more than catch the true thief: he must come to terms with the father who abandoned him; solve the riddle of the Oracle, which warns him of betrayal by a friend; and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

One of my favorite topics in Science when I was a kid were the planets. I love naming all the planets and describing each of them and their properties. If you think that’s geeky, wait until you hear this: I was so enamored by them that I cracked the encyclopedias open to read about Greek and Roman mythology.

See, geeky. :-B

I didn’t really pick up the Percy Jackson series immediately as soon as they came out. I had no idea they were out, anyway, until a friend told me about it. I wasn’t interested in it until I saw the trailer of the movie. Children of gods and goddesses? Okay, I’m in!

The only problem? I couldn’t find a copy of the first book anywhere. There’s always book # 2, 3, 4 and 5, but never book # 1. Oh dear. Where to find Percy now?

Well, I already wrote the story of how I found the book, so now let’s go to the actual review.

So let me get it out now: Percy Jackson reminded me a lot of Harry Potter.

Let me count the ways:

  • Protagonist are both males
  • Both have dark hair and green eyes
  • Both found out that they were “special” and had to go through some weird stuff before they arrive at a place they can be safe
  • Both had to go through some kind of quest or else things will fall apart and there will be chaos all over
  • Both had two friends — a smart girl and a sort of bumbling guy — to support him and help him during his adventure
  • The story of the first book both had to deal with three-headed dogs.

I think I may have forgotten some similarities, but yes, they are quite similar. I’m not saying that Percy copied Harry all the way, but there’s just the similarities in the main character and in the story. Of course, anyone who hasn’t read Harry Potter will not think of that, so maybe it is just me.

But don’t get me wrong — the first book of Percy Jackson was a very good read. :) The story was written in first person, so it was fun being inside Percy’s head. I personally think Annabeth is more feisty and stronger than Hermione, and Grover is not exactly human. It was fun reading through the story and trying to figure out whose son or daughter was who, and getting to know the gods and goddesses as they were portrayed in the book.

I like the Harry Potter series a lot, but I was able to absorb Percy Jackson far easier than the latter, most probably because of my interest in mythology. :) I can’t wait to read the rest of the series (so I hope the fifth book’s paperback version would be released soon!).

Rating: [rating=4]
→ Pretty fun and interesting take on Greek mythology. Has a bit of similarities to HP, but not so much that it’s a rip-off. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series. :)

2010 Challenge Status:
* Book # 5 out of 100 for 2010
* Book # 3 out of 20 Fantasy books for 2010

→ Get The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1) by Rick Riordan on Amazon.com
→ Percy Jackson and the Olympians website
→ Rick Riordan’s website

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