Review: Chemistry

"This is what happens when I fall in love. It's poisonous. It's deadly."

Claude Frollo can be described as judgmental, arrogant, and manipulative. He grew up unloved, going from a foster home to a church sanctuary where he finds solace in Valentine, a disabled teen that resides with him. Together, they dedicate themselves to their high school studies. Until Esmeralda appears. If only she would see how perfect Claude and her could be together. He must have her no matter the cost. 

Of all the characters in The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, Claude is the least charismatic. It was entertaining to see the author give him the stage light and focus this YA retelling with an antagonist in the lead. The closer Claude got to Esmeralda, the more problems he created. His selfishness always prevailed, but his childhood background helped us understand why he would do such things. Regardless of the one sided instaloves in the story (Phoebus is also present), the novel remained entertaining, keeping the reader wondering how low Claude could go to keep Esmeralda by his side. 

Loved it! 

Review: A Thousand Nights

"Good men fall to monsters everyday."

Lo-Melkhinn might be a rich and powerful men, and yet, he struggles to keep a woman. All three hundred of his wives passed away within the first week of marriage. Ever since, girls everywhere are terrified of him. But Lady-bless moves in willingly to the castle and becomes his latest wife. She does so to protect her beautiful sister, and deep down, because she believes herself dispensable. Can her spirituality protect her or will she succumb to the beast?

Like all fairy-tales, there's a duality theme through the novel of good vs evil (god vs Satan to be exact). Although, I do believe that Lady-bless' sacrifice for her sister came from the heart, her lack of self-confidence soon emerged. Her sister was the fiery one, the gutsy, the beautiful, the one whose mom dad loved best, the best seamstress... (yup, the list is long). Every time Lo-Melkhinn tries to talk to Lady-bless she brings her sister into the conversation. Even during sex!

"My sister does her rituals too, proper ones, far from the city walls," I said to him, though I could not say how I had seen it. "She prepares for her wedding." 

And then the plot twisted. When Lady-Bless started seeing herself as someone who could give back (like sowing with the other women of the palace) she became aware of her spirit, and finally gave us the badass female that was needed to handle Lo-Melkhinn's possessed soul. 

Feature and Follow Friday: Hello Quick Fix

Parajunkee / Alison Can Read

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Q: If you could re-write a book, which one would it be and what changes would you make?

So many series endings could be modified without me putting up any resistance. Requiem by Lauren Oliver comes particularly to mind.

The whole book concentrated on the rebellion, with fight scene after fight scene. This wasn't supposed to be a WWF match. It's a book. What happened to the dialogue? The love triangle that had been woven in the sequel?

Rubbish.

I would make sure Lena chose on of the two boys, and make the subplot with Hana a lot more suspenseful.

Which book do think deserves a make-over?

Review: The Indigo Spell

Sydney is all grown up

It appears the Alchemists are hiding crucial information from their members. Sydney would never dream of going against her kind, but when this information threatens to place Jill in danger, all bets are off. Not only does she become a spy for Marcus, but she also turns to Magik as a form of defense. Now that she is changing her beliefs, will Sydney finally admit her love for Adrian?

Although I loved seeing this new Sydney, strong and filled with confidence (other than in intellectual matters), the majority of the book was slow paced. From her taking lessons to running errands, Sydney just wouldn't stop working. Then every time she would get some time off, the environment was tense(sexual tension between her and Adrian, and group tension between her friends). Also the climax was solved way too easily.

Not my favorite of the series.

Bloodlines (Book One)

The Golden Lily (Book Two)

Review: Wolf by Wolf

"She-wolf. An interesting choice."
"I didn't choose it," she told him. "It chose me."

Back in 1944, Yael was selected for an experiment in a Nazi camp. She received hundreds of injections to turn her into a perfect Aryan girl, and erase whatever Jewish traits she might have. The experiment left her physically transformed. But the memories of the camp and the loss of everyone she held dear left her traumatized. The only thing she could do after such tragic events was kill the Fuhrer.

Graudin did an incredible job at mixing both the past and the present (from 1944 to 1954). Yael might not make the sweetest decisions -- from kidnapping and usurping Adele Wolfe, a famous athlete, to putting Wolfe's family at risk -- just to join a race around the world and get closer to Hitler. But Yael remains nonetheless a brave female character. The other members of the race were well balanced. And a semi-love-triangle was formed. 

Prepare for a twist at the end.

Don't miss The Walled City also by Ryan Graudin