Review (Becky): The Looking Glass Wars

Adapted Goodreads Summary

Alyss Heart, heir to the Wonderland throne, was forced to flee through the Pool of Tears after a bloody palace coup staged by the murderous Redd. Lost and alone in Victorian London, Alyss is befriended by an aspiring author to whom she tells the violent, heartbreaking story of her young life. Alyss had trusted Lewis Carroll to tell the truth so that someone, somewhere would find her and bring her home. But Carroll had gotten it all wrong. He even misspelled her name! If not for royal bodyguard Hatter Madigan's nonstop search to locate the lost princess, Alyss may have become just another society woman sipping tea in a too-tight corset instead of returning to Wonderland to fight Redd for her rightful place as the Queen of Hearts.

Title: The Looking Glass Wars

Author: Frank Beddor

Pages: 384

Genre: Fantasy (adapted classic)

Audience: YA

Rating: 3 stars-  I'd friend this book on Facebook, mostly because I liked looking at it

My Thoughts:

This began as a richly re-imagined adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I liked the grittiness of the "real" Wonderland, and the idea that Alice was originally from there. I had high hopes for the high-spirited Alysse, but once she left wonderland the characters all flattened into the deck of cards that they were. Most of them coasted on the personalities granted to them by the original story or simply didn't have personalities at all. I also got a little bored of the "good" vs "bad", white imagination vs black imagination theme. It became very star warsy and it's hard to care much about a character who is pure good and effortlessly wise.

Throughout the story I did empathize with Alice for the most part, and I was alway impatient to get back to her when the focus shifted onto one of the secondary characters. I also loved the mesh of real life events from the girl who inspired the original story with the "real" wonderland. This is worth a read, but it didn't quite veer far enough from the original or go deep enough into character for my tastes. The plot became flat and predictable in the last half. I'll probably read the sequel, however.

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FTC Disclaimer

All reviews are solely the opinions of Becky and/or Randi. We are not paid in any way for our reviews, and all opinions are 100% honest.

The Sunday Post (4)

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer ~ It's a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. 

Last Week We Brought You

Sunday

Review of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
A heartbreaking holocaust story from the POV of a young German girl.

(Review)

In short, this is a punishing read, but it is well crafted and perhaps important to experience. It shows the suffering on all sides, in all ages.

Monday
Review of Sold, by Patricia McCormick
Randi's thoughts on another hard-hitter
(Review)

While I like the story and it is beautifully written, I can’t exactly say I enjoyed it, especially realizing that girls like Lakshmi are suffering these horrors right now around the world. However, that awareness strikes a chord and makes me want to take action, to speak out as Patricia McCormick has with this book.

Tuesday

Series to Finish

See which series I've left hanging and why!

(Top Ten Tuesday)

Wednesday Waiting on Wednesday

Which books are Randi and I eagerly awaiting?

(WoW)

Thursday What's Next? Randi is in need of help picking her next book.  All voted are appreciated; it's not too late. (What's Next)

Thursday 

The Girl in the Steel Corset, by Kady Cross

Randi and I go head to head reviewing the same book.  Who loved it and who scorned it?

(Twice Baked Thursday)

Do you like poorly written, shallow adaptations of classics? Then this book is for you.   (Becky)  
I thought it played out its adaptation of Jekyll/Hyde pretty well! Cross took Robert Louis Stevenson's idea and came up with her own backstory and implications for it. (Randi)

Friday

Paper Towns, by John Green

Becky's review of yet another John Green Novel

(Review)

The characters seemed painfully real in all of their awkward, insecurities. Readers should be forewarned that there are many red flags, and this is not for the younger or more sensitive teen. 

Saturday

Randi reviews the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, by Mark Haddon
(review)

While I recognize this book's merit and great popularity, it just wasn't for me. I liked Christopher (our main character), and I appreciated the authentic quality of his perspective, that of a boy with (I'm assuming) Asperger's Syndrome, a very high-functioning form of autism.

Sunday

Review of The Looking Glass Wars, by Frank Beddor
Becky reviews the gritty adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

(Review)

I had high hopes for the high-spirited Alysse, but once she left wonderland the characters all flattened into the deck of cards that they were. Most of them coasted on the personalities granted to them by the original story or simply didn't have personalities at all. 

Goodreads Summary                                              It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .

This Week Look For

See what's going on for the month of October and tell us what you're planning!  Randi and I will be having an exclusively scary set of reviews.  I'll be focused on horror and she will sample from horror, thriller and mystery.  Every week we'll have a new list-post for you to join us in!

(monthly event)

Sunday
Review of The Looking Glass Wars from Becky
(Review)

Monday
 Review of Living Dead Girl from Randi
(Review)

Tuesday
Top Ten Older Books Not to Forget
from Becky and Randi
(Top Ten Tuesday)

Wednesday
Waiting On Wednesday
See what books Randi and I are eagerly awaiting!
(WoW)

Thursday
Twice Baked Thursday:
Randi and I go head to head reviewing The First Days by Rhiannon Frater
(Twice Baked Thursday)

What's Next
I need your help deciding what I should read next!
(What's Next)

Friday
Fugitives by John Green
(review)

Saturday 
Randi gives us a Stacking the Shelves post!
(STS)

Sunday
Becky Reviews Books of Blood by Clive Barker
(Review)

Review (Randi): The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Title: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Author: Mark Haddon
Publisher: Vintage
Publication Date: May 2003
Page Count: 226
Genre: contemporary fiction/mystery
Audience: adult, with young adult appeal (2004 Alex Award winner)
Source: bought, read for class
Rating: 2.5 I would give this book a hand hug (since it doesn't like people touching it)

Goodreads Summary: 
Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. He relates well to animals but has no understanding of human emotions. He cannot stand to be touched. And he detests the color yellow.

This improbable story of Christopher's quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog makes for one of the most captivating, unusual, and widely heralded novels in recent years.

My thoughts: While I recognize this book's merit and great popularity, it just wasn't for me. I liked Christopher (our main character), and I appreciated the authentic quality of his perspective, that of a boy with (I'm assuming) Asperger's Syndrome, a very high-functioning form of autism. I previously read House Rules by Jodi Picoult which features a main character with Asperger's Syndrome and, as a future teacher, I find I'm quite fascinated by AS - while it is on the autism spectrum, individuals with autism oftentimes have similar but very different characteristics of what people normally associate with autism. In fact, AS has historically gone undiagnosed and individuals with AS have been labeled as eccentric or unusual rather than identified as having a specific disorder.

Back to the book, aside from Christopher's unique point of view, I didn't connect with the overall plot of the story. Character reactions to Christopher's behavior sadly ring true as many people misunderstand the nature of autism; individuals with autism are often judged as simply having behavioral problems by people who don't know any better (in this book, police officers, Mr. and Mrs. Shears, random strangers, etc.). I felt for Christopher's character but found it difficult to relate to a story that follows the mystery of who killed Wellington the dog. It was interesting to see the jumps Christopher's mind makes, the stream-of-consciousness factor of the book; we go from his "detecting" activities to random (to us) tangents about science, maths, and religion. I found myself often skipping over these parts because they were way over my head, though I'm supposing that was the point!

Overall, I see the appeal of this book and would recommend it to anyone interested in reading a book told from a character with Asperger's Syndrome. However, it sadly wasn't for me.

FTC Disclaimer: All reviews are solely the opinions of Becky and/or Randi. We are not paid in any way for our reviews, and all opinions are 100% honest.

Review (Becky): Paper Towns

Goodreads Summary                                                    Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life - dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge - he follows.

 After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues - and they're for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer Q gets, the less Q sees the girl he thought he knew.

Title: Paper Towns
Author: John Gren
Pages: 300
Genre: Contemporary realism
Audience: Young Adult
Rating: Four and a half stars:  I'd have  a crush on this book, but my marriage to Looking For Alaska prevents me from more.

That's right!  Another John Green book. I've got to catch them all, like Pokemon!  In a room with only his books, you could pretty much close your eyes and point.  They are all amazing.   I love Green's realistic yet quirky development of characters, his penchant for road trips, and the way he effortlessly weaves great literature into the plot-line. While I did like the main character in this story, I was struck by how similar he was to to the MC in Looking for Alaska and also An Abundance of Katherines. I also felt, again, that there are no teenagers out there who think this deeply about their lives and speak so eloquently. I'm not sure there are many adults who do, either. 

Regardless, the hunt for Margo was compelling and while I did not sympathize much with her character, by the end I thought I could understand her. I think teens can relate to her theory that "forever is made up of nows", although that may be hard to say when you're 80 and have no money for your medications and can't work. Oops, my adult side crept in. I agreed more with Q's conclusion that people have to be who they are, and you can't try to turn them all into you. On a final note, this book is kind of a roller-coaster ride of serious and humorous.  It  is worth a read, though, so long as you've already read all his others.

FTC Disclaimer

All reviews are solely the opinions of Becky and/or Randi. We are not paid in any way for our reviews, and all opinions are 100% honest.

Twice Baked Thursday (9): The Girl in the Steel Corset

Twice Baked Thursday is an original weekly meme created here at Cardigans, Coffee and Bookmarks.  This feature was created because Randi and Becky often read the same books and have very different opinions about them.  When we read the same book, we do a joint review on it, showing both sides. Our reviews will "talk back" to one another, one reviewer writing in another color text. Please feel free to join us and link to our blog in your post, and also use the widget below to link your own double review to our page.

**Warning! Becky gets a bit snappish but it's only out of love for Stevenson.***

Title: The Girl in the Steel Corset (Steampunk Chronicles #1)

Author: Kady Cross

Genre: Steampunk

Audience: young adult

Pages: 473 (though the first ~100 pages consists of the prequel, "The Strange Case of Finley Jayne," which I actually enjoyed more than the novel)

Source: library (Becky); Bought (Randi)

Rating: 1 (Becky) I'd drop-kick this book off the roof of my 10 story library in the name of all gothic literature. But to be fair, I couldn't bring myself to read more than 225 pages of it.
3 (Randi) I'd friend this book on Facebook so I could check out all the pictures of its badass steampunk clothes!

Goodreads Summary: 
In 1897 England, sixteen-year-old Finley Jayne has no one...except the "thing" inside her.When a young lord tries to take advantage of Finley, she fights back. And wins. But no "normal" Victorian girl has a darker side that makes her capable of knocking out a full-grown man with one punch....

Only Griffin King sees the magical darkness inside her that says she's special, says she's one of "them." The orphaned duke takes her in from the gaslit streets against the wishes of his band of misfits: Emily, who has her own special abilities and an unrequited love for Sam, who is part robot; and Jasper, an American cowboy with a shadowy secret.

Griffin's investigating a criminal called The Machinist, the mastermind behind several recent crimes by automatons. Finley thinks she can help--and finally be a part of something, finally fit in.

But The Machinist wants to tear Griff's little company of strays apart, and it isn't long before trust is tested on all sides. At least Finley knows whose side she's on--even if it seems no one believes her.

(Becky in black text, Randi in red!)

Our thoughts: Do you like poorly written, shallow adaptations of classics? Then this book is for you.  All others run away as fast as you can.  It wasn't that bad! :P I really struggled to come up with anything to warrant this one star, and finally I decided the details about clothes were kind of nice...if you like victorian/steampunk clothes.  I reaaaally liked the clothes! Other than that, this reads like bad fan-fiction. I thought it played out its adaptation of Jekyll/Hyde pretty well! Cross took Robert Louis Stevenson's idea and came up with her own backstory and implications for it.  Yes, a boring backstory with none of Stevenson's depth.  Adapting classics is very different from adapting fairytales, which start out as an empty framework.  Pssssh, the backstory was good in theory, just not executed as well as it should have been! :P

The author clearly has good taste in classic, gothic literature.  She draws parallels to Shelley and Stevenson, with hints of Austen. Yay for Shelley's Frankenstein and Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (a favorite!). Unfortunately, though she'd clearly read those older texts, she didn't really seem to grasp what they were about on any of the deeper levels.  For instance, Dr J and Mr H was not about a purely good man and a purely evil creature.  Dr J was dark to begin with. I think it's more as though she's trying to fuse her two "natures" back together rather than exorcise her "evil" side; I didn't feel like it was angel versus devil, more "normal" versus "being-without-inhibitions." Cross also didn't seem to understand that a key element of gothic horror is the suspense, of which there was none in this book. I would agree with the suspense-lessness. It took a while to get explanations on specifics, but the villain was pretty obvious less than halfway through the book. It was all predictable and everything was rushed.  I had the entire plot figured out within the first few chapters. You're no fun!!! ;).  I can't help it!!

In all fairness, I don't understand steampunk and I'm not sure I want to. LOOOVE it!  Why would everyone dress in uncomfortable clothes and do things that made no sense for the technology they possess? HALT. Say what?! What do you mean by things that don't make sense with the technology?! :-0.  If you are adept enough to make most of the mechanics of this book, you should be beyond having servants for the most part.  You should be beyond wearing enormous dresses for no reason. It seems like a key flaw in the genre, for me anyway.  I think the dresses were not actually big (I don't think the one on the cover matches the ones described ~ they're usually described as being short with stockings, so I was picturing miniskirt, corset, leggings kinda thing). And rich people now have servants, silly! lol. Not to this degree!

 It also seemed like this book didn't really know what it wanted to be.  It could have worked as a continuation of a gothic novel, or a fantasy novel without the literary parallels, but together it was jarring. I think it could have been better (I really really LOVED it until about halfway through, then I just liked it. The tensions between characters seemed believable but unimportant). When writers try to walk in the footsteps of the greats, most people are going to stumble. Can't argue with that! Perhaps it's the English majoriness in us that makes us a bit...snobbish(?) in that aspect? ;).  Perhaps it's my intense love of the original novel :(. OUCH. That's one of my favorite novels! You just made me feel bad for liking TGitSC. :(

The characters failed to have any consistency or believability in thought-process or actions.  In one scene the MC doesn't know any cuss words, in the next she cusses like a sailor.  In part that could be explained by her father's identity...but the author never links it.  The male protagonist was a complete Mary Sue and I kind of wanted him to get run over by mechanical horses. Whoa, girl. You better take that back when you're talking about Griffin! I adored him. What a sweetiepie hahaha. The secondary characters were incredibly boring stock types.  You could yank most of them from the story without problem. Hmm. Yeah, that's true. I didn't like Sam, Jasper was boring, but Jack and Emily were fun. Though it seemed like Finley's perceptions of Jack were entirely skewed.... (SPOILER: Seriously? You're going to stay at the dude's house after you "run away," but then you're "afraid" to have dinner with him? Inconsistent!!! /SPOILER)

In the end...A for the concept and F for execution. I'd say...A for concept, C+ for execution. Overall I liked it, but there are so many other books I want to read that I don't foresee myself continuing the series.

P.S. Did I mention the MC is blonde?  Why does the girl on the cover have dark hair?  That bugs the bejeepers out of me! Although, at least in this book there's a point to the dress, though Finley's are usually short dresses. Honestly though, how much more difficult would it have been to find a blonde model?

P.P.S. I love the names in this book ~ Finley, Cordelia, Jasper, Griffin (especially Griffin); they feel fitting for the time period, but they're a little bit special. :)  I liked Finley :)!

What's Next (11): Randi

What's Next is a weekly feature started by Hafsah at IceyBooks. Basically, we need your help deciding what to read next! So check out the books below & vote on what YOU think should be our next read!

Whooo! I got new books. :) Here! Help me choose which one to read first!

Adapted Goodreads Summary: 
Starting over sucks.

When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens. 

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades. 

If I don't kill him first, that is.                                                                               

Goodreads summary:

"I was sixteen the first time my grandmother died . . ."

Sarah Parsons has never seen Amber House, the grand Maryland estate that's been in her family for three centuries. She's never walked its hedge maze nor found its secret chambers; she's never glimpsed the shades that haunt it, nor hunted for lost diamonds in its walls.

But all of that is about to change. After her grandmother passes away, Sarah and her friend Jackson decide to search for the diamonds--and the house comes alive. She discovers that she can see visions of the house's past, like the eighteenth-century sea captain who hid the jewels, or the glamorous great-grandmother driven mad by grief. She grows closer to both Jackson and a young man named Richard Hathaway, whose family histories are each deeply entwined with her own. But when the visions start to threaten the person she holds most dear, Sarah must do everything she can to get to the bottom of the house's secrets, and stop the course of history before it is cemented forever.

Goodreads Summary: 
“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

Let me know your vote in the comments! 

Waiting on Wednesday (11): Becky & Randi

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine for book bloggers to highlight the books we are anxiously awaiting!

Today, Randi is waiting on:

The Sweetest Dark
by Shana Abé
Publication Date: April 2nd, 2013

Summary from Goodreads: “With every fiber of my being, I yearned to be normal. To glide through my days at Iverson without incident. But I’d have to face the fact that my life was about to unfold in a very, very different way than I’d ever envisioned. Normal would become forever out of reach.”

Lora Jones has always known that she’s different. On the outside, she appears to be an ordinary sixteen-year-old girl. Yet Lora’s been keeping a heartful of secrets: She hears songs that no one else can hear, dreams vividly of smoke and flight, and lives with a mysterious voice inside her that insists she’s far more than what she seems.

England, 1915. Raised in an orphanage in a rough corner of London, Lora quickly learns to hide her unique abilities and avoid attention. Then, much to her surprise, she is selected as the new charity student at Iverson, an elite boarding school on England’s southern coast. Iverson’s eerie, gothic castle is like nothing Lora has ever seen. And the two boys she meets there will open her eyes and forever change her destiny.

Jesse is the school’s groundskeeper—a beautiful boy who recognizes Lora for who and what she truly is. Armand is a darkly handsome and arrogant aristocrat who harbors a few closely guarded secrets of his own. Both hold the answers to her past. One is the key to her future. And both will aim to win her heart. As danger descends upon Iverson, Lora must harness the powers she’s only just begun to understand, or else lose everything she dearly loves.

Filled with lush atmosphere, thrilling romance, and ancient magic, The Sweetest Dark brilliantly captures a rich historical era while unfolding an enchanting love story that defies time.

Why I'm waiting anxiously: Yet again, caught by another beautiful cover! Historical setting (in England, no less!), boarding school (in a Gothic castle!), secret powers, what sounds like a love triangle; all things I greatly enjoy in a book (note: I enjoy the tension in well-written love triangles). 

Today, Becky is waiting on:

Pivot Point

by Kasie West

Publication Date: February 12th, 2013

Summary from Goodreads:

Pivot Point is about a girl who has the power to Search alternate futures. When faced with a life changing decision, she lives out six weeks of two different lives (in alternating chapters), both holding the potential for love and loss, and must ultimately choose which path she is willing to live through.


Why I'm waiting anxiously:  I've been meaning to read more time-travel fiction, as per the advice of a good friend.  This gorgeous cover game the jolt I needed to pick one out!

Top Ten: Series to Finish

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish.  This week our list (brought to you by Becky!) is about the top ten series I still need to finish (or don't want to finish).

  I'm really terrible about finishing series.  I just get so excited for the first book, but my attention peters out after the major character development is finished.  I end up leaving series strewn all over the place like my shoes and I forget to finish them.  Anyone else have this issue?

Maybe it will help me to have some of them listed.  

Young Adult Series

1. Escape From Furnace, by Alexander Gordon Smith
    I just love these covers.  They really give you a taste of the atmosphere in the books, which is gritty, nightmarish, and bleak.  If you strip this story down to one sentence, it's about a secret prison where the boys are turned into monsters.  Literal monsters, after all, this is horror.  I just finished Fugitives, after an obscenely long wait on the hold list.  Execution doesn't come out in the United States until NOVEMBER. GAHHHHHHHHH.  Oops, sorry.  I guess I'll just wait patiently.


2.The Maze Runner, by James Dashner

   These books are action packed and almost as nightmarish as the Furnace series. A one sentence description: One giant, deadly conspiracy game.  I wasn't as keen on the writing style, and the whole conspiracy mystery gets a bit old in book 2.  I'm ready to know what is actually happening.  I'm on hold for The Death Cure, but I doubt I'll go so far as the prequel and the 1.5.  I really do not like when an author decides to squeeze a book back into the series when they have already finished it.






  3.Mortal Instruments, by Cassandra Clare
   Talk about amazing cover art.  These are some of the most stunning books I've ever seen.  I do find the cut-off faces annoying at the beginning, but maybe it is symbolic. In a sentence, this series is about Shadowhunters: half angels who fight just about every supernatural creature you can think of.    I love the atmosphere of this series but the whole incest thing weirds me out.  I'm done with City of Ashes and I'm not sure if I'll finish the others.  I think there are more coming out.


4.Divergent by Veronica Roth
   This series is still being written.  I've read book one and I liked it enough to go onto book two eventually.  It had a lot of logic flaws, but I think I will overlook them for the sake of the unique world-building.  In a sentence, this series is about a futuristic society that is divided into set categories, and those don't fit are called divergent.  This is another one of those series where there is a book 1.5 (shudder).  No thanks.  You should have said it better the first time.



5. Graceling Realm, by Kristin Cashore
   These books had stunning covers, but the characters and setting felt extraordinarily flat and underdeveloped to me.  I doubt I'll read the second or third book since there are so many dystopian series to sample.  In a sentence, Some people are born with a Grace, meaning a special ability.  It felt a bit like X men set in a fantasy world.

6.Generation Dead, by Daniel Waters
I was really surprised by how much I liked the first book in this series.  In a sentence: teens rise as zombies and fight for their rights in school.  The character development and real-life parallels made this an instant favorite.  I'm a bit burnt out on zombies right now so I'm waiting a bit to read number two.



7.The Wolves of Mercy Falls, by Maggie Stiefvater
I was lukewarm about book one, so like Graceling, it could be a while before I return to it.  Maybe when I'm in the mood for candy-lit I'll think about it.  I loved Scorpio Races, so I thought I'd enjoy this more.  In a word: werewolves.  


8. Matched, by Ally Condie
Yet another dystopian series that I just didn't care about.  It wasn't bad, but there are so many stronger dystopias that I'm not sure I'll ever finish.  In a sentence: the government makes all of the choices for people, including who to marry, but one girl and a boy find love outside the rules.


9 Benny Imura, by Jonathan Maberry
I wanted to like this series, both for the amazing covers and the zombies.  However, the action took far too long to begin, and I didn't really connect to the underlying theme or the characters.  The writing style was incredibly heavy handed.  It's pretty unlikely that I'll pick these back up.  In a sentence: Benny apprentices as a zombie hunter for his older brother, and things get really bad really fast.


10. Incarceron, by Catherine Fisher
I was all set to read book two, and then 10 zombie books came in for me at the library and I forgot all about this one.  I'll probably finish it in the next few months!  Summary?  Secret key, secret prison, scary monsters.

That's all folks! Ok, well not really.  Since I compiled this list I've tossed more series' to the winds.  I have a bunch of children's series as well, but I'll save that for another time :).