Critiquing the Books I Read
Stray is definitely a conflicting read. Tabbies are rare and thus treated like an endangered resource – and locked up. Faythe has to fight the system and prove herself the best - which she (eventually) does. But having her date someone like Marc ruins all of that.
Simon v. THSA is that one of a kind YA Fiction novel that makes you want to run through the streets, raving about the genre and the good it does in the world. It's the book that makes you believe in love and in the spring of youthful innocence again.
Derek Stone seems to suffer from Christian Grey Syndrome, and BW is a veritable Anastasia Steele - except Ana wasn't prone to fainting fits. A terrible book, and if this one's anything to go by, the preceding book in the series is bound to be awful as well.
Lucy Vacarro's phone is stolen on prom night and a bunch of inappropriate pictures uploaded to her Facebook account through it. All the subjects in the pictures - along with the rest of the school - is pissed at her, and resort to an extremely dirty bullying campaign for revenge. The novel follows her as she tries to figure out who did that, tries to deal with the fall out, and tries to repair her relationship with her best friend Ellie, while simultaneously trying to deal with her feelings for Cole, Ellie's ex boyfriend. #scandal is a great light read, especially for those who prefer YA fiction. It's also a good take on important and relevant issues, it's realistic, and none of its characters can be accused of being truly uni-dimensional. In short, it's a great way to pass a few hours without having to numb your mind completely.
Last Sacrifice is the Fast and the Furious and Die Hard 2: Die Harder all rolled into one of the VA series. And I'm not just saying that because of the inordinate amounts of C4 explosives in this book. The book ends on as neat a note as could be managed under the circumstances. There were, of course, loose ends that infuriated me until I realized a new followup series was in the works. But, contrary to what my sad ending review may lead you to believe, there are no great tragedies in Last Sacrifice. It's the quintessential triumph-over-evil-in-the-end kind of book. The final chapter puts a cute little bow on almost everything, and for what's left over, [*cough* Adrian *cough*] you get to read the Bloodlines series.
Spirit Bound talks about the journey one embarks on when one's trying to save something or someone, and questions you about the lengths you're willing to go to achieve your goal. It asks you how you will prioritize your life. When you're dedicating all your life and everything in it to your mission, is there anything left over? Anything that is more important than your mission and your life and everything in between? It also talks about how, even after someone has been saved - even though they've been rescued - they still have a ways to go. Saving someone isn't the same as redeeming them. And there is no forgiveness - there can be no forgiveness - without redemption. All too often in our lives, we forget this fact in our hurry to have our loved ones back in our lives. It pertains particularly to people who've been in Rose's position - i.e. people who've been in abusive relationships. Humans do have the capability to love those close them even when their loved ones are being abusive. But they shouldn't - they musn't - get close to you again until they've redeemed themselves, and until you're sure - dead sure - that there's no trace of Strigoi left in them.
Blood Promise ends with a shell shocked and traumatized Rose returning to St. Vlad's and re-enrolling in her classes, and with a very shaken but recovering Lissa making her promise that the next time she goes off on an insane adventure, she'll take Lissa with her. It marks a heart warming end note to a very violent book by returning to the classic foundation of this story: the strong and unbreakable friendship of two girls - each incredibly strong in her own way - who'd die for each other.
Feminist Quill 