Never fear, I have still been reading away these past two months. I admit that I skipped March's update semi-deliberately because I was embarrassed that I only read two books that month. BUT I got back on track and read four books in April so now I am ready to post more reviews. It's a couple days early but there's no way I'm going to finish the current behemoth I'm in the middle of before Thursday so I'm posting while I have the chance!
7. Red Rising by Pierce Brown: This book was great! It's a pretty new release, I think it was published in January, but it's definitely going to be a big hit in the future. It's YA sci-fi dystopia, but written by a man and with a more male-friendly protagonist and storyline. Not that I don't love some angsty teen love triangles, but it was refreshing to read a more action-centered sci-fi since this isn't my usual type of book. The world was detailed and well-built, and the storyline was action-packed and thrilling, if a tad more graphically violent than I prefer. The main character is interesting and likable without being too perfect, and I'm really looking forward to the next installment. Highly recommended. Also, the author is a fellow Pepperdine alumnus so he has that going for him too!
8. Runner by Patrick Lee: My dad passed this one on, and though it's definitely outside my usual genre as a general adult action thriller, I found it very easy to read and enjoyable. It's a page-turner, perfect for reading on vacation or on an airplane, and it went by very quickly. The characters are fairly shallow, but I don't need a lot of depth for this kind of book. The action was fun and unpredictable and the plot has some fun twists and a satisfying ending. Perfect for what it is trying to be.
8.5. Letter 44, issues 1-5: I don't think these count as a full book, but I'm throwing them in here because they do count as reading material! I rarely read comic books; not because I don't find them enjoyable, but because they cost around $4 an issue but only take me between 5-10 minutes to read. I'm a girl on a budget, so I can't really make that kind of financial commitment. But my parents passed these on and have both been reading them (as has my sister) so I gave them a try. Like I said, I know next to nothing about comics, but I'm liking the storyline! Even if I only get it in drips and drabs. If you like comics and sci-fi, I recommend them for sure.
9. Walking in circles before lying down by Merrill Markoe: This is your basic chick lit like I used to devour all the time in college. This one's "hook" is that the girl can hear what dogs say; this was funny but was basically the only worthwhile part of the book. The main character is grating and does that stupid chick lit girl thing where she refuses to see what a giant douche monkey her boyfriend is until the very end when she finally ends up with a nice guy instead. I don't think I would recommend this one, but it was harmless enough.
10. A Crown of Embers by Rae Carson: This is the second book of the trilogy I started in February, and I loved it even more than the first one! Elise, the main character, has really grown a backbone since the first book, which made her more interesting and likable. The romance here was sweeter and more believable, and the male romantic interest was well written and interesting in his own right. It ends on a cliffhanger but since I had the other book already in my possession, I didn't mind too much. Otherwise, you might be annoyed that this book does not stand on its own -- you definitely need the first and the third for it to make sense.
11. The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson: The third and final book in the trilogy. I found the very end to be a tiny bit of a letdown, but not aggravatingly so. The first two-thirds are good and exciting in wrapping up the storyline from the second book, even if it felt a bit like we were just moving from one exciting action scene to the next. Overall, I really enjoyed this trilogy and appreciated that the third book was not total horseshit, as seems to be the norm with YA sci-fi/fantasy trilogies.
12. Legend by Marie Lu: Technically, this was a re-read. I read this book a couple years ago and was not that impressed so I never bothered to read the rest. But recently, and on my sister's recommendation, I decided I wanted to read the full trilogy so I checked this out from the library as a reminder of the story before I move on to the next two. I still found the story to be pretty predictable and the romance to be completely uninspiring, but in general the world it takes place in is an interesting one. We'll see if the next two impress me more, as I'm not totally sold yet.
That's it for April! Hopefully I finish this giant book before the end of May or next month's update will be MIA as well.
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