Beauty and the Reader beautyandthereader 2019-05-23T12:04:26+01:00 review: Scarlet - Marissa Meyer 2015-01-11T20:19:00+00:00 2015-01-11T20:19:00+00:00 beautyandthereader *non-spoiler review*


Another book I gave a rating of 5/5 stars. It was wonderful! However, I don't like the fact it took me so long to finish. And school doesn't count as a real excuse for once.


You've probably all experienced a reading slump at least once in your life. I'm going through a major slump at the moment and am still looking for a perfect book to pull me out completely. Although I did really enjoy Scarlet, this book only pulled  me out half. I guess I'll have to make me pull myself through the last half to get out of this slump.


Enough about slumps. Let's talk about Scarlet! I haven't seen anyone hating this book. I've literally heard no hating comments towards the complete Lunar Chronicles series whatsoever. So if you haven't read this book, pick it up! Even if you don't like fairytales, but do like space, pick it up! And if you don't like space, but do like fairytles, pick it up! If you don't like either of them, you should still pick it up! I can assure you you will love it. And if you like both fairytales and space... Why haven't you picked it up? There's no excuse.


Does any of you watch Once Upon a Time? If you do, you will probably get why I love Little Red Riding Hood so much. It made me connect to Scarlet even better. Moreover, I liked her being French. France is awesome :D


For those who have read Cinder and don't want to read Scarlet because they think we won't see Cinder, you're wrong, Cinder is there too! And more kickass then ever! Also, we will meet new characters. They are all special and funny and awesome and so much more, but most importantly: they all have their flaws.


The flaw-part from Prince Kai is very unclear to me, by the way. Yes, I really really like him, but he seems to be perfect. His flaws aren't really described. However, I d o think he can be annoying at times. How long could it possible take to get it all figo, ured out? It wasn't that difficult for me either.


The plot in Scarlet was sometimes a little slow, which I felt better due to my reading slump, but worked out really well. In addition to Cinder, I didn't see the plottwists coming. Okay, maybe one, but I don't think that one was meant to be an unexpected twist. However, the rest was so unpredictable and really got me into the story. 


Even though I didn't read that much, I could never put Scarlet down. I really couldn't. Strangely enough I couldn't pick it up either. so typically me.... :/


In conclusion, Scarlet is a wonderful book everyone should've read. The plot is worked out very well and you will love the characters for everything they stand for, especially their flaws. I really want to read Cress right now, but I'll have to wait for the book to arrive. 


Here's some advice by me: make sure you have all the books when you start the Lunar Chronicles. You don't want to be wait for the third book*


*Exceptions for those who are in a reading slump (like I am)

review: Alice in Zombieland 2014-12-28T16:06:00+00:00 2014-12-28T16:06:00+00:00 beautyandthereader There are mixed opinions on this novel. I personally really enjoyed this novel, even though it wasn't exactly what I thought it would be. If you think it will be a retelling of Alice in Wonderland I should say it isn't. Maybe  a little, but this Alice doesn't fall down a rabbit hole. There is no mad hatter. There is no Wonderland, not even something close. If you read this novel expecting it to be like Alice in Wondrland, you'll probably dislike it, which is why I decided to start this review off by saying this.


To be quite honest, I was expecting an Alice in Wonderland kind of story. However, the fact that it wasn't as well didn't really disappoint me. This may as well be because I prepared myself for some kind of terifying novel with horrible details on how the zombies killed humans, etc. This wasn't the case. By the way, if you're expecting this: it was readable for me, so it can't be that discusting. Therefore, I thought the 'discusting factor' was perfect, but this might be just me. 


I believe we are all quite familiar with the reading slump that has arrived in the bookish world since approx. September, which I have experienced as well. For me, Alice in Zombieland was the perfect novel to get out of this slump. The writing-style of Gena Showalter was wonderful. Every time I started reading I just flew through the pages. It was funny, alice was a relatable character, and herr thoughts could just feel so familiar. 


And then we have the other characters. Kat was amazing! I loved everything about her. Her introduction already made me love her. And then some later background information about her I didn't expect at all... It was so good!

And there's Cole, whom I also couldn't help but love. You can't resist the violet eyes... 


Moreover, I thought the plot was worked out very well, and there were a few references in the beginning that finally lead to the ending. I believe those who didn't like this novel basically didn't like it because they expected something different. If you don't go into the novel with these expctations, you'll probably love it as much as I did!


review: The Goddess Test - Aimee Carter 2014-12-06T09:18:00+00:00 2014-12-06T09:18:00+00:00 beautyandthereader Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked the way the new world was set up, I liked the characters, I liked the way it was written, and I liked the plot. And yet, I didn't give it 5/5 stars. There were some reasons for this. In this review, I will discuss both positive and negative aspects of the book. I will do my best to not spoil, but maybe I will give some examples (without giving names) that might be a small spoiler.


First and foremost, the writing style. I loved the writing style of Aimee Carter. Every time I started reading this book, I couldn't stop myself. There are some books in which I have this as well, but, considering the fact I'm in a kind of reading slump right now, this doesn't count for all the books I read. It usually takes me some time and pages to really get into the story. For this novel, it all seemed so easy. However, as the story continued, I started losing this feeling. Yes, I still loved the writing style, but there were some other things that turned me down a little. Because of this, it took me longer to finish the book than I had wanted to.


Secondly, the plot. I liked the plot of this novel. It kind of reminded me of Teardrop, which I as well really enjoyed, but than better written (by this I mean it was written in a way that made me feel more involved in the story, whilst it took me quite some time to feel involved in the novel Teardrop). Moreover, it contained Greek mythology, and who doesn't love Greek mythology? However, after this great start of the novel it didn't get much better. I had oped it would, but unfortunately, I only found things getting weird. I believe I was halfway through the book when I experienced this feeling first. Suddenly there was romance, and, even though it was written in first person view point, we hadn't noticed this romance before AT ALL. It is usually true that the main character suddenly realises she likes a certain boy, but as a reader, we could see that one coming from the very very first start. For the Goddess Test, all I could do was guess, but I honestly did not know how it would exactly turn out to be. A love triangle? No love interest? The person who somehow seemed most obvious, but with whom we didn't see any romantic developments? Apart from this, I did like the plot. There were lots of twists that I didn't see coming at all. Actually, I believed the only real turn down of the plot was the romance, which I absolutely didn't like.


Then the characters. I liked Kate. However, sometimes she seemed so weak, whilst at the same time, she was described as brave. I did understand why they called her brave, but they couldn't see/hear/read what she thought. If they did, I think she would have seemed weaker in their eyes too. Next to this small thing, I really liked Kate. She was selfless, and some of her characteristics and choices were relatable to me. Still, I think my favourite characters were Ava and Calliope. I hope that in the sequel, we will learn more about them. Also, I didn't really understand Henry, and get a clear image of him and his characteristics in my head. I hope this will happen in the second novel as well.


In my opinion, this book as just a fun read. It isn't one of my favourites, but I do believe it deserves 3.5 stars. I really hope the second novel will explain the characters and some major plot points better. If that is the case, I am sure I will rate it higher than I rated this novel. And for I forget, I do think people who love Greek mythology should read this book!


P.S. Am I the only one who thinks the cover could've been much prettier?

review: Under the Never Sky - Veronica Rossi 2014-11-28T20:43:00+00:00 2014-11-28T20:43:00+00:00 beautyandthereader

This book had been recommended to me for months, so when I finally got the book, I started reading it very soon. As it said on the cover that fans of the Hunger Games would love this trilogy, so I started this book with quite high expectations. Apart from a few little things, this book totally lived up to my expectations!


I read this book in six days, which isn't very fast for me, but looking at the lack of time I have and reading slump I'm going through, I think this was quite fast. The main reason why I couldn't stop reading was probably because of the "mystery" involved. When I read this book, I had lots of questions. I always like it when a book leaves you questioning all the time, especially if you are still able to follow the plot in someway. This was the case with Under the Never Sky. At the beginning, everything was vague, and as a reader who didn't know anything about the book, this made you want to read the book even more. However, I believe it could've been set up with a little more explanation, so that more details about the beginning could be remembered. Personally, I don't remember much of it, only some vague details.


Secondly, the viewpoint. Under the Never Sky is told from two perspectives : Aria's and Peregrine's. I really liked this, as they both were really interesting characters, and I wanted to know their story and what they thought about some things. However, the thing I didn't like about the perspective was that it is told in third person viewpoint. We were already given a story with two main characters, but why the third person? It sometimes confused me a little. This was not because of not seeing any difference between Peregrine and Aria, but at moments I was not fully committed to the story, this could be confusing. Moreover, I think the story being told in first person would have made much more sense, and would have made it more personal. On the other hand, when reading Allegiant, which is also written from two perspectives in first person viewpoint, I thought I was reading from Tris's perspective when I actually read from Four's perspective, even at times I was only focusing on the story.


I really liked the characters and as well felt connected to them. Aria had some characteristics I could relate to, and, even though he is a boy, I as well understood Peregrine and why he did what he did. Moreover, I thought their emotions were well-defined, so the few actions/reactions I didn't really get were explained. The other characters in the book unfortunately weren't present as much as I'd like them to be, but they were there, and even though I didn't understand them as well as the main characters, I did enjoy them being there. I especially liked Cinder. I hope we will read more about him in the second book, Through the Ever Night.


One of the major things that disappointed me were some deaths. I surely didn't think too many characters died, but I did think that some of those who did die could've been given another "fate". By this, I mean to say that I believe some of the deaths could have had a more creative solution. This might sound a little mean, but I was hoping there would be a kind of "fake" death. I will still be hoping to see this in the following books!


Lastly, some of the things I loved about this book, starting with the cover. In my opinion, it is really really beautiful, especially the cover we get to see on Goodreads. Secondly, I loved the title. Under the Never Sky sounds so beautiful, and so do Through the Ever Night and Into the Still Blue. Also, I liked how it was mentioned in the novel itself, and the Aether having to do with it. Furthermore, I loved the world. From my point of view, this was a very well built up world, that made sense and its description immediately created a clear image in my mind. And last but not least, I loved loved loved the ending. It was so beautiful! I can't wait to read the last book!!

review: Stunning - Sara Shepard 2014-11-23T20:03:00+00:00 2014-11-23T20:03:00+00:00 beautyandthereader

*could contain spoilers from previous books in the Pretty Little Liars series* 


Stunning is the eleventh book in the Pretty Little Liars series. In this review, I will mainly be ranting. However, don't get me wrong on this, I still like the books, I just think they're getting a little repetitive. 


First things first: the plot.Each book starts with a kind of flashback, which I think is pretty cool. I always love the start of a Pretty Little Liars book. However, then it continues and the plot is almost always the same: they know there is another A, but at first, he/she doesn't do much. Later, they get a note, and start suspecting someone, from whom I can at the very beginning tell isn't A. However, the liars always keep suspecting him/her till the end, or somewhere close.

As a reader, this plot could become very very boring. We all knew Kelsey wasn't A, right? And still, all liars suspected her or at least considered she could be A for approx. a day. Only Emily doesn't suspect people that easily, but this is only because she still thinks Ali is A. Don't get me wrong on this, I still en

joy reading books in this series, but I'm just waiting for the real plot twist to come.


Now more about the characters. I used to like reading from Spencer's point of view, but I don't anymore. The main thing her life revolves around now are drugs, and I just don't like the way she handles things. Moreover, all the things that happened to her weren't a surprise to me, not at all. I just knew it was going to happen, because it was predictable. I really hope Spencer is going to change back into the person she was, because she is certainly my least favourite liar at the moment.
However, in this book, I did like Hanna a lot. In contrast to Spencer, Hanna is the character whom I did not really liked at first, but do like most now (by this, I only mean reading from her viewpoint, I still like Ems best ;)). I just think her plot was way more interesting, and although I didn't find a major plot twist in her "story", there were a few unexpected things. The same goes for Ems and her little baby. However, I don't think there was a major event in Ems's "story", except for her baby, so that as well disappointed me a little.
As for Aria, the plot was okay. I liked the secrets and the way A played her, since I found a few twists here I didn't expect at all. Also, I start liking her character more and more, which is also because of Noel Kahn.

You probably wonder why I still read Pretty Little Liars. That is very simple: I still enjoy reading it. Yes, some things annoy me and yes, some things get a little too repetitive, but no, this doesn't stop me from reading it. Pretty Little Liars is just a series I want to finish, and whenI read it, it's just very relaxing. I don't have to think much (it's not like I will be able to figure out who A is anyways) and just enjoy their problems. Mean, right? But it is the truth. I do like the things that happen, I just wished they wouldn't happen to them. That is the thing that bothers me most of all: it keeps happening to them. Why not someone else? Why not write a new series? I'm hoping to get the answer in the last book called Vicious! (By the way, It bothers me in some way, but if it happened other wise, I wouldn't have liked it either. I don't want a story without the four liars, I mean, we all love them, right? ;))

In conclusion, I would recommend this book to those who, just like me, can't just stop reading a book without getting answers, or those who are just really patient. If you really hate a long series, without getting answers to your questions, I would recommend you to stop reading after the eighth book.