Books | Amy C. Shaw

My Top 10 Series to Finish

September 8, 2015 • 19 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. The actual topic for today is Ten Finished Series I Have YET to Finish, but the thing is, I’m usually good about finishing series and when I don’t, it’s usually because I don’t want to. So since most of my started but not yet finished series are unfinished, I will be sharing my Top 8 of those, then the top 2 that are finished.

The Unfinished Series…

1. The Lunar Chronicles

I mean, this is the most obvious one. I am going to be so sad when it’s all over… and yet I can’t wait for Winter to release! #bookwormproblems

2. The Naturals

I’ve only read the first book so far, but I enjoyed it and look forward to reading the next two!

3. The 5th Wave

The twists and turns of the first two books have definitely guaranteed that I have to see how this alien invasion shakes out for Cassie and company.

4. Embassy Row

I enjoyed this first book and really love the concept of living on Embassy Row, so I look forward to more from this series!

5. The Winner’s Trilogy

I am definitely excited to see how Kestrel will prevail in the end.

6. The Selection

I still have only read the first book, and even though it didn’t blow me away, I’ve always intended to read more. I wanted to make sure my ship would sail first before I continued, and now the original trilogy has extended to include the stories of America’s children, and I’ve got to admit I’m a little intrigued by that.

7. Mistborn

I finished the original trilogy, but now this universe has been expanded upon with The Alloy of Law and other books. At first I wasn’t sure how interested I was because it’s many years in the future and not the same characters, but really, do I think I would be disappointed? So I would like to get around to these other books some day.

8. The Young Elites

I will admit, my initial excitement for this series has worn off since I initially finished The Young Elites, but I still think I would like to continue this series.

The Finished Series…

9. The Gallagher Girls

I’ve received encouragement to continue reading this series, so I believe I will.

10. Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

This is more iffy than definite, but the first book was a quick, fun read, so I would at least like to read the next book, especially since the first book kind of leaves you hanging for the second, even if it’s not in a dramatic, cliff-hanging way.

Which series do you need to finish?

The Would You Rather Tag

September 6, 2015 • 4 Comments

Thanks to Charlene @ Bookish Whimsy for tagging me to do this, even if this questions are very hard!

1. Would you rather read only trilogies or standalones?

Even though there are some trilogies I have dearly love (The Hunger Games and the Grisha trilogy, most notably), I am a huge fan of standalones. It’s so much easier to pick up a book without the commitment to read further, and I wouldn’t have to deal with disappointing sequels either!

2. Would you rather read only male or female authors?

I have to say I am really NOT a fan of this question, but I will say female authors since that is primarily what I read. But if I had never been able to read The Chronicles of Narnia or Mistborn or The Book Thief merely because they were written by men that would be a tragedy!

3. Would you rather shop at Barnes & Noble or Amazon?

I definitely feel a lot more love for Barnes & Noble and try to do most of my book shopping with them. Unfortunately, sometimes I do go with Amazon even though they anger me in multiple ways, but B&N is definitely my fave.

4. Would you rather all books become movies or TV shows?

I think more books are better fit to become movies than they are TV shows. And besides, there’s no way I could keep up with that many shows!

5. Would you rather read 5 pages per day or 5 books per week?

Wow! So one of these is way too little and the other is way too much! I guess I’ll go with 5 books a week, and here’s hoping this is my job, where I can be paid to read one book for 8 hours every weekday!

6. Would you rather be a professional reviewer or author?

Even though being a professional reviewer would be 100 times easier in my opinion, it’s never been an aspiration of mine. I have wanted to be a published author for a large portion of my life. So I think that’s a previous obvious answer.

7. Would you rather read your top 20 favorite books over and over or or always read new ones you haven’t read before?

Even though I do enjoy rereading favorites, I would have to go with always reading new ones. There are always new favorites waiting to be discovered, and how else would I be able to find them? The memories of my favorites will live on in my heart, and many have movie adaptations as well.

8. Would you rather be a librarian or a book seller?

That’s really hard to say… it would depend on which library and which bookstore. But I do think librarians probably have better hours, so from a practical standpoint, that would probably be my answer.

9. Would you rather only read your favorite genre or every genre except your favorite?

If I can count young adult as my favorite genre, I would just stick with it because there are still so many subgenres within it. I just hope I wouldn’t burn out in 20 years.

10. Would you rather only read physical books or ebooks?

As convenient as ebooks are, physical books are my first love.

I’m tagging anyone who is interested! What would you rather do in the above scenarios?

Mini Book Reviews: The Sci-Fi & Fantasy Edition

September 2, 2015 • 3 Comments

All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill

Young Adult Sci-Fi/Contemporary

I read several reviews for this book and knew of all the hype, but I still didn’t fully know what to expect from it. As you can see above, it blends genres, which I love. The book follows two timelines, a previous timeline that reads like a contemporary-turned-thriller, and a later timeline that reads like a sci-fi with just a taste of dystopia (but don’t let that scare your dystopia-weary soul, because I promise it’s not like another rehash of Divergent or anything). The plot was great, the characterization interesting, and I just loved seeing how everything weaved together. And the way time travel was handled in this book was well-done. I will say that while I thought the ending was really great and fitting, it made me raise my eyebrow a little like the Fringe finale, where I was questioning how exactly that could have happened that way, but I do forgive it because I think it was the right ending.

I really enjoyed this one and only had a few minor issues with it. However, for some reason this one doesn’t really stick to as a favorite that will stand the test of time, so it’s not quite a 5 star read, but it was definitely worthwhile.

Rating: 4.5 stars

The Winner’s Crime by Marie Rutkoski

Young Adult Fantasy

I really enjoyed The Winner’s Curse, and while I didn’t love this one as much, I still enjoyed it a good bit! I admit, I’m suffering a bit from book amnesia on this one since I have waited a while to review it, but I do remember the twisty mind games that I enjoyed in the first book continuing through this one, though it did play out a bit differently. It’s more of Kestrel trying to tiptoe around the emperor and not reveal her hand to him, rather than her manipulating situations.

My biggest complaint about the book is that I wanted more of the emperor’s son, who I actually really liked and would have liked to have seen more friendship between him and Kestrel. I was also very sad about how things turned out with Jessi and Ronan, but I’m not saying Rutkoski made the wrong choices about them because sadly, I don’t think she did. I just liked them in the first book and hated to see how they acted in the second.

I think I found the romance between Kestrel and Arin a little more interesting this time around, but I’m actually still not a super hard shipper for them. But the ending definitely left me intrigued for the last book and to see how it all plays out.

Rating: 4 stars

The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson

High Fantasy

I don’t know what I can say about this book. There is so much heartache, so many surprises, an adorable and perfect dance scene with Vin and Elend, and the ending is just… WOW. I think Brandon Sanderson is a master when it comes to endings (well, writing in general really). I was so floored by how it all played out, how it simultaneously ripped my heart out and crushed me and made me kind of angry to being so perfect and what it needed to be. I mean seriously, how does that happen?! Also, I think every question I had about this world and the characters was answered. So yeah, if you have any interest in these books, read them.

Rating: 5 stars

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Science Fiction

I enjoy the movie adaptation of this book, but I did not expect for the book to actually line up with so much of the movie! There are a few things I like better about the book, and a few things I like better about the movie, but overall this book is a fun romp through the galaxy that makes you think of improbable possibilities. I will say that the book ends much more abruptly than the movie, without a really nice wrap-up, and is clear you are supposed to continue on with the next book, which I imagine I will do one day!

Rating: 4 stars

Have you read any of these books? What are your thoughts?

Mini Reviews: The Contemporary Edition

August 13, 2015 • 10 Comments

I have been reading a lot more YA contemporary lately, and wanted to share my thoughts on my four most recent contemporary reads.

The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

I know this will mean nothing to most of you who read through your books much faster than I do, but I read this book in two days. It was just a fun, quick, easy read. It didn’t change my life and I had a couple minor issues with it, but overall I just really enjoyed getting to know Caymen and Xander and watching them interact. It was definitely worth the $1.99 I spent on it!

Rating: 4 stars

Content Advisory: Pretty clean. I don’t recall any language; some kissing.

The Last Time We Say Goodbye by Cynthia Hand

Believe it or not, this is probably actually the first really heavy issue book I’ve read, at least in the YA contemporary genre. I was hooked right away with Alexis’ voice as she wrote in a journal provided to her by her therapist, bemoaning the idea of writing out her feelings and comparing it to bleeding out with leeches. But the book definitely gets heavy, with Alexis constantly wishing she could go back and change the night she found out her brother killed himself, trying to deal with her mom and others in her life, and worrying that she is seeing the ghost of her brother. The ending was very emotionally satisfying, and I’m very glad I read this book to gain more insight about the aftermath of a suicide.

Rating: 4 stars (If I gave quarter stars it would be 4.25. I know that sounds ridiculous but it’s just not quite to 4.5, but almost!)

Content Advisory: Moderate language; some kissing.

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13 B by Teresa Toten

I impulsively borrowed this from the library because I knew it focused on characters with OCD, and there are secondary characters in my WIP with OCD. This was a very interesting read for me; there were many things I liked but many I wasn’t crazy about as well. First, despite the fact that he struggles with OCD at a level I doubt I will ever understand, Adam is the most realistic character in this book, aside from maybe his stepmother and neighbor. His dad, therapist, Father Rick, Ben, and the other OCD kids felt real sometimes, and Sweetie and Adam’s mom NEVER felt real. (Sweetie is for real the strangest 5 year old ever. I don’t think a single kid on the planet talks like that.) Sometimes the characters and the dialogue took me out of the book (Adam and some of the kids constantly say stuff like, “That’s superior!” and other things I have just never heard anyone ever say).

Yet the book is quirky and full of humor, and I really did feel empathy for Adam. I enjoyed Robyn too and enjoyed their friendship-turned-relationship. And also yet again, this book was often awkward and hard to read, which I think was part of the point, because these characters are struggling with very real issues and disorders and it does hurt, but the added layer of Adam’s mom’s craziness was sometimes too much for me to bear. The ending was very unsatisfying as there is very little finality, but I know that doesn’t bother everyone, and it doesn’t always bother me, but I didn’t feel I got the full arc from Adam that I wanted, though we do see it going in that direction.

Rating: 3 or 3.5 stars (I really can’t decide.)

Content advisory: Moderate language; some kissing.

The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

I saved my favorite of the bunch for last. I mean, where do I even begin?! I ADORED Max. I loved him so much at first I couldn’t properly ship him and Paige because I didn’t think Paige deserved him. But when she starts to come around and really understand her feelings towards him, I felt for her and definitely got all aboard their ship! The last chapter was such perfection that I can’t even. I LOVED all the nerdy banter and just about everything really. The friendships were so spot-on!

My only complaint about the book really is at Max’s birthday party when they played Spin the Bottle and I was like, really?, but even the characters knew it was juvenile, and it was what gave Paige the push she needed to confront her feelings.

So seriously, READ THIS. I have never loved a YA contemporary to this degree.

Rating: 5 stars!!! (I borrowed this from the library and then immediately ordered the hardcover from Amazon because I LOVED IT THAT MUCH.)

Content advisory: Sporadic and mostly mild swearing.

Have you read any of these? What are your thoughts?

Why You Should Watch Deep Space Nine if You Love Mistborn, & Vice Versa

August 10, 2015 • 7 Comments

As I was reading The Hero of Ages I suddenly became struck with the similarities between the Mistborn books and my favorite TV show, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. On the surface, it can be hard to miss. Mistborn is a fantasy set in a made-up world, and there are people who are able to draw powers from metals. Deep Space Nine is science fiction, set on a space station that is next to made-up worlds, but many characters come from Earth and none of them have special powers, though there are aliens who have unique abilities. And yet, I found some themes in both that I could not ignore the similarities between, and I feel that if you enjoyed them in one of these stories, you’ll enjoy them in the other.

Overall Character & Story Arcs

Before we get into the common themes, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that both Mistborn and DS9 have strong arcs for a wide variety of characters and for the story as a whole. Garak, who is in only 37 episodes of DS9, is a fan favorite who plays a significant role in the show. Nog, who is only in 47 episodes, starts off in DS9 as an annoying kid and ends up with a profound character arc, and there’s even an episode dedicated to him in the seventh season.

In a similar fashion, while the trilogy mostly focuses on Vin, Elend, and Sazed, and there are important secondaries such as Breeze, Ham, etc., and there are characters who are present in one or two of the previous books who go through big changes in the final book, such as TenSoon and Spook.

Religion/Religious Icons Theme

In both DS9 and Mistborn, there is a definite theme of religion and religious icons. Deep Space Nine focuses on the faith of the Bajorian people; we are introduced to leaders of their faith and see how different they can be from one another, and Sisko, an outsider, is revered as their “emissary,” a religious icon.

In Mistborn, all religion died under the Lord Ruler, save for his. After he is overthrown, the Church of the Survivor is born, turning characters into religious icons, and in the end of the trilogy, without giving away too much, I’ll just say we see this really manifest, in a way much like it did in the Deep Space Nine finale.

Source

Shades of Gray, Particularly in War

Both DS9 and Mistborn also explore what it means to be a good man or woman, yet to have to also make tough decisions, to possibly kill, and to do things in war that you would normally not approve of. When I was reading The Hero of Ages and Elend struggled with decisions he made, I thought, wow, this is reminding me of In The Pale Moonlight. The season 6 episode of DS9 is one of my favorite in Star Trek, and I can’t imagine a fan of Mistborn not loving this episode, because it really explores the dark underbelly of the good guys.

Bittersweet End

Both of these endings will give you feels, both sad and sweet. They close some chapters but open up new beginnings and possibilities for many characters and really for the world the story is set in.

So seriously, if you’re a fan of one, you should really look into the other. They’re obviously different mediums, but both are fantastic stories. Deep Space Nine will not start off like Mistborn; it might even seem silly or just kind of OK to you at first, but I promise if you stick with it you’ll see all the things I’ve mentioned. And Mistborn is a slow burn of a book, taking its time to tell the story, but none of it feels unnecessary. Brandon Sanderson masterfully weaved together all the threads throughout the three books and leaves you without any confusion.

Are you a fan of one, or both, of these stories?

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