ReviewL The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore

Title: The Weight of Feathers
Author: Anna-Marie McLemore
Publisher: Thomas Dunne
Release date: September 15th 2015
Pages: 308
Genre: Young Adult magical realism
Source: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thanks!
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The Palomas and the Corbeaus have long been rivals and enemies, locked in an escalating feud for more than a generation. Both families make their living as traveling performers in competing shows—the Palomas swimming in mermaid exhibitions, the Corbeaus, former tightrope walkers, performing in the tallest trees they can find.
Lace Paloma may be new to her family’s show, but she knows as well as anyone that the Corbeaus are pure magia negra, black magic from the devil himself. Simply touching one could mean death, and she’s been taught since birth to keep away. But when disaster strikes the small town where both families are performing, it’s a Corbeau boy, Cluck, who saves Lace’s life. And his touch immerses her in the world of the Corbeaus, where falling for him could turn his own family against him, and one misstep can be just as dangerous on the ground as it is in the trees.

My rating: 3 out of 5 stars

I'm kind of sick of Romeo and Juliet retellings, but The Weight of Feathers is a completely new take on the story and creates its own magical world to set it in, so I was intrigued from the first page on. While I had some issues with the story, the strangeness and the magic of The Weight of Feathers is what kept me turning the pages.

The writing is what carries the story. The style is very elegant and ornate, but not in an alienating way; the voice pulls you in and lets you become immersed in the world of the novel. It makes The Weight of Feathers feel kind of like a dream - I don't quite understand it, but it's beautiful nonetheless. The whole novel is very atmospheric and just has a certain energy to it which makes it impossible not to want to figure out the intricacies of the world its set in. I loved reading about both families, their shows, and their magical traits. Even when I had issues with the story or the characters, I kind of just accepted all of them to just be part of the intrinsic weirdness of this book, so I feel like I can't even criticize it. 

The romance is okay but not great, and I kind of wish it hadn't taken over so much of the book (which I know is a strange thing to ask of a Romeo and Juliet retelling). I liked reading about Lace and Click when they first meet and everything that happens before they get together. Once they're together, though, the romance got a little too idealized for my tastes; we're told that the two of them are so perfect together and they both talk about their love for the other, but I never really felt it. It wasn't quite insta-love, but I do think they fell for each other too quickly for the romance to work for me. And the plot twist towards the end that affects their relationship kind of weirded me out, to be honest.

Not just the romance but really, the characters themselves, just aren't that strong. They have interesting backstories and live in a fascinating world, but I don't feel like I ever got to know neither Lace nor Cluck as people. I had some smaller issues with the novel, too, like the unevenness of the pacing, and the randomness of what parts of the story are based in logic and the rules of our own world and which parts are simply explained by magic. 

I'm sorry that this review is so all over the place, but I'm still not really sure what to make of The Weight of Feathers. It's just really weird, but weird in an enthralling way that makes it impossible to put the book down. I didn't like everything about it, but I just kind of accepted that even these things that bothered me were just part of the uniqueness of this book. I'm still not sure if I actually liked this book, but if you're looking for a strange and unique read, you should definitely give this one a try.

Review: Trauma by Michael Palmer and Daniel Palmer

Title: Trauma
Author: Michael Palmer & Daniel Palmer
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Release date: May 12th 2015
Pages: 384
Genre: Adult mystery/medical thriller
Source: NetGalley - I received a free eGalley of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thanks!
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Dr. Carrie Bryant's is a much-admired neurosurgical resident at an esteemed Boston hospital. But when her first unsupervised brain surgery goes horribly wrong, she loses her confidence-and, after another fateful misstep, Carrie decides to quit her residency and move back home. Her new life's purpose: To help her combat-vet brother, Adam, recover from a crippling case of post-traumatic stress disorder.
At first, the experimental program at the VA Medical Center-one that could forever cure the ravages of PTSD-seems like best option for Adam. But Carrie has her doubts when one of her patients goes missing...and then another. Carrie turns to local investigative reporter David Hoffman for help in getting answers. But the VA organization is determined to keep its secrets-at all costs. As Carrie and David descend into a labyrinth of murder and corruption, the price Carrie could pay for asking the wrong questions is her own life...

My rating: 2 out of 5 stars

I haven't read many medical thrillers, so I might not be the best judge, and I can't really compare Trauma to any other books in the genre. But I was just very disappointed by this book. I was excited about the premise because I tend to like mysteries with female MCs that combine suspense with a more personal story, and I thought the PTSD element might be an interesting twist. But unfortunately, the awkward writing and implausibilities made it hard for me to enjoy this book.

I feel really mean saying this, but the writing felt very amateur-ish; this felt very much like a debut novel, or even an unpublished manuscript, which is kind of surprising for accomplished writers (although I had never read anything by Michael or Daniel Palmer). The writing is just so awkward, with bad metaphors and all telling and no showing. A lot of the over-the-top descriptions had me rolling my eyes, and I was always so focused on the awkwardness of the writing that I could never actually get lost in the writing.

The characters had a lot of potential. Carrie is actually an interesting character, I really liked David, and Adam adds an interesting element to the story as well. But the writing kept me from actually feeling for these characters. Because I associated the melodramatic wordings with Carrie's voice, I couldn't really take her seriously, and since the awkwardness of the writing was so distracting, I couldn't actually feel for Carrie or David. The romance between Carrie and David is especially cheesy and the descriptions of Carrie's attraction to David made me seriously question the authors' ability to write a female MC. 

I understand that this is a medical thriller, but, to be honest, the excessive medical terms and explanations kind of bored me. I actually enjoyed them in the beginning, during Carrie's first surgery, but after that it just got too much. Of course a story like this needs some medical explanations to show its accuracy, and it did seem like the authors knew what they were talking about, but for readers like me, the amount of medical information was unnecessary; it was just too much and too confusing for someone outside of the field to follow. I got so bored by all of this information that I didn't even try to follow it towards the ending. The ending, to me, seemed very far-fetched and didn't justify everything that happened in the story, and one of my biggest pet peeves about mysteries is when the bad guy doesn't have adequate motivations.

The set-up seemed intriguing and had potential, but it just doesn't work. The awkward writing and far-fetched twists made it very hard for me to care about this story, and I don't think I can recommend it.

Review: Defending Taylor by Miranda Kenneally

Title: Defending Taylor
Author: Miranda Kenneally
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Release date: July 5th 2016
Pages: 304
Genre: Young Adult contemporary romance
Source: NetGalley - I received a free eGalley of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thanks!
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Captain of the soccer team, president of the Debate Club, contender for valedictorian: Taylor’s always pushed herself to be perfect. After all, that’s what is expected of a senator’s daughter. But one impulsive decision—one lie to cover for her boyfriend—and Taylor’s kicked out of private school. Everything she’s worked so hard for is gone, and now she’s starting over at Hundred Oaks High.
Soccer has always been Taylor’s escape from the pressures of school and family, but it’s hard to fit in and play on a team that used to be her rival. The only person who seems to understand all that she’s going through is her older brother’s best friend, Ezra. Taylor’s had a crush on him for as long as she can remember. But it’s hard to trust after having been betrayed. Will Taylor repeat her past mistakes or can she score a fresh start?

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

It's no secret I love the Hundred Oaks series, especially the first couple of books. The last book, Jesse's Girl, didn't impress me quite as much as the earlier ones, and neither did Defending Taylor, but they're both still stellar additions to the series. I loved everything about Defending Taylor, but it just didn't resonate with me the way some of Miranda Kenneally's previous books did.

Taylor is a very unique character. She's a pretty typical YA MC in how driven and smart she is, but her background and her decisions before and during this book make her stand out. She's not always easy to like because her naivete and privilege do show at times, but I still liked her most of the time. Despite her privilege, she's going to a relatable character for overachieving teens under a lot of pressure to succeed. I especially loved how tough she is and how she always speaks her mind, especially in regards to soccer and her relationship with Ezra. I had some issues with how judgmental and hypocritical she is about some things (like when she talks about drugs, condemning the guy who asks her for Ritalin, when she's been taking Adderall, which is almost the same thing), but I liked her nonetheless.

And Ezra, I absolutely loved. One of my favorite things about Miranda Kenneally's books is that they often have older, out-of-high-school love interests, which doesn't happen often in YA. Ezra is Taylor's older brother's best friend, which has definitely been done before, but it works so well! The two of them have great chemistry, and I love how Ezra's backstory and secrets are woven into the novel. But even though I loved Ezra, there was something missing in the romance department; even though I appreciate that this is a different kind of romance because Taylor and Ezra have known each other forever, the way they got together seemed a little too easy, and I kind of missed the novelty and drama of seeing two people meet and figuring out if they actually work together. 

I loved the secondary characters, too. Even though we don't get to know Taylor's parents too well, I loved reading about the politics element of the novel, seeing how Taylor's decisions influenced her dad's election and what role the media played in all of this. I loved getting to know Taylor's older siblings, Jenna and Oliver. And I also loved seeing friendships slowly develop between Taylor and the girls on the Hundred Oaks soccer team. I wish the soccer element had been explored even more, and I especially wanted more closure in relation to Nicole, the team captain/bully in order to see what might happen next for the team.

Despite these minor complaints, Defending Taylor is still a stellar book. It's not an all-time favorite of mine the way Catching Jordan and Breathe, Annie, Breathe have become, but it's definitely a cute romance with Miranda Kenneally's trademark engaging writing, keen understanding of teen relationships, and personable, realistic characters. While I would recommend starting with a different book of hers, fans of the series should definitely check this one out!

Review: Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between by Jennifer E. Smith

Title: Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Publisher: Poppy
Release date: September 1st 2015
Pages: 246
Genre: Young Adult contemporary romance
Source: NetGalley - I received a free eGalley of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thanks!
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On the night before they leave for college, Clare and Aidan have only one thing left to do: figure out whether they should stay together or break up. Over the course of twelve hours, they retrace the steps of their relationship, trying to find something in their past that might help them decide what their future should be. The night leads them to family and friends, familiar landmarks and unexpected places, hard truths and surprising revelations. But as the clock winds down and morning approaches, so does their inevitable goodbye. The question is, will it be goodbye for now or goodbye forever?

My rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Jennifer E. Smith's books are reliably fluffy romances - they're never too deep, and the character development and writing aren't the best, to be honest, but they're always fun, and Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between is no exception. 

I really like the premise of Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between. I love when YA books are set in that in-between-space after graduating high school and leaving for college, and the situation in this book is definitely relatable. I found myself looking back on myself right before leaving for college, and also relating Clare's transitions back to my current transition, having just graduated college and heading off to grad school in the fall (especially because me and Clare will be going to the same school!). I also love the premise of a couple deciding whether or not to stay together - in comparison to all the books with drama about a couple trying to get together that end at the "happily ever after," it's refreshing to read a book that actually explores what happens after.

I've read some reviews that were annoyed by Clare's indecisiveness and complained that she spent the whole book going back and forth between breaking up and staying together. But I didn't mind that at all because, well, wasn't that the point of the book? I understood Clare's indecisiveness; it makes sense to struggle with this when you consider that that Clare and Aidan love each other but that Clare is very practical about how hard it would be to sustain a long-distance relationship as freshmen in college. I also love how Jennifer E. Smith decided to resolve this issue; I was scared that, this being a romance(-y) novel, the ending would be cliched and overly happy, ignoring the reality of the situation and making the whole book kind of pointless. But the way she decided to end this book works perfectly; it'll satisfy readers who want a happy ending without being too dramatic or unrealistic.

To be fair, this book isn't perfect. Like I said earlier, Jennifer E. Smith's writing and characters aren't always the strongest, and I found the characters in Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between to be a little underdeveloped. It's not that any of the characters are bad, necessarily; they're just nothing special. Clare is the typical studious YA MC, and Aidan is the typical jock that turns out to be a sweetheart. The secondary characters, like their friends Scotty and Stella and their parents, are also relatively typical with no unpredictable developments. But, as usual in Jennifer E. Smith's books, I didn't really mind this, because it's a fun, fluffy read nonetheless.

If you're looking for depth, unique characters, or stunning writing, Jennifer E. Smith's books probably aren't for you. But if you're in the mood for a fun, fluffy story that you can finish in a couple of hours, Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between, just like the author's author books, is perfect for you.

Review: A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

Title: A Little Life
Author: Hanya Yanagihara
Publisher: Anchor
Release date: March 10th 2015
Pages: 832
Genre: Adult contemporary/literary fiction
Source: Gift
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When four classmates from a small Massachusetts college move to New York to make their way, they're broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition. There is kind, handsome Willem, an aspiring actor; JB, a quick-witted, sometimes cruel Brooklyn-born painter seeking entry to the art world; Malcolm, a frustrated architect at a prominent firm; and withdrawn, brilliant, enigmatic Jude, who serves as their center of gravity. Over the decades, their relationships deepen and darken, tinged by addiction, success, and pride. Yet their greatest challenge, each comes to realize, is Jude himself, by midlife a terrifyingly talented litigator yet an increasingly broken man, his mind and body scarred by an unspeakable childhood, and haunted by what he fears is a degree of trauma that he’ll not only be unable to overcome—but that will define his life forever.

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

A Little Life is not the kind of book I usually read. It took me a while to get into it because it starts out slow, and you have no idea what the book is really going to be about. I also don't tend to like books that follow characters over the course of their whole lives (I usually read shorter books that focus more on one issue or short part of a character's life *cough* YA). Hanya Yanagihara also breaks a ton of conventions of our usual narrative, which sometimes made it a little harder to figure out which character we're reading about and when a scene is set. But despite all of this... the book works. I wouldn't call it an enjoyable read, but it does take you on a very emotional, reflective journey that I very much appreciated.

I loved the characters in A Little Life. Some are more fleshed out than others: Jude, of course, ends up being the most complex character and is explored in the most depth, and Willem and Harold are especially strong characters, too. But I wish we could have gotten to know Malcolm, and to some extent, JB, better, too; they seemed to be equally important as Jude and Willem in the beginning, but unfortunately we sort of lose sight of them as the story begins to focus more on Jude. But regardless, I loved reading from all of these perspectives, and I feel like I learned something different from each character.

Really, it's the emotions that make this book so special. Hanya Yanagihara is painfully, disturbingly honest in her depictions of all the terrible things that have happened to all of the characters but Jude especially. I cried a ton while reading this novel; I cried for each main character at least once, and for Jude approximately a hundred times. A Little Life presents a very bleak outlook on life, and it doesn't hold back, so you do need to be in the right state of mind to read this. Yanagihara's prose is very honest and reflective, and it makes you question everything and think about life in new ways. All of this (in addition to this book having 800ish pages) made this a very slow read for me, one that took me a while to digest; this book moved me so much that it just took some time to really process it.

There are some elements of this book that I found unrealistic. For example, it bothered me that all four of the main characters are so exorbitantly successful and famous in their fields, and that all the characters in the book somehow have enough money to always be jetting off on last-minute trips to different places. Some more professional issues and issues regarding money could have made these characters more realistic. And while I appreciated how much friendship is valued in the story, I also don't know that everyone remains friends, that no one grows apart and just disappears from the main characters' lives, because I just don't think that's how real life works. But, in a way, I just kind of accepted these things as part of the story.

I'm not really sure how to sum up my emotions about this book because I have so many. It's not a book I enjoyed, really, and not the type of book that I could read on a regular basis, but I do appreciate having read this one. A Little Life is not an easily accessible book, both for its length and its honest, bleak outlook. It probably could have been cut down a little bit because it does get repetitive, but its length adds to the harrowing experience of reading this book, so in a way, it works. A Little Life is the kind of book that takes you on a journey that is both heartbreakingly emotional and at times uncomfortably reflective, and I know it'll stay with me for a long time.