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So I figured I should actually make posts that are not related to writing! (I am probably going to finish another chapter within the next few days. God have mercy on our sooooouls.)
Instead, I thought I'd do a few mini book reviews/recs, since I'm getting some books read again! I'm going to keep 'em fairly spoiler-free, but if you're the type who likes to know as little as possible about the book before going in, I would give this post a miss.
The Last Good Place of Lily Odilon by Sara Beitia - Albert Morales, the new kid in the quintessential Sleepy Small Town, goes to spend the night with his girlfriend Lily, recently reformed party girl and free spirit extraordinaire. She gets up in the middle of the night to get a drink of water... and never comes back.
This YA suspense novel has two main timelines: one, in past tense, follows Albert in the immediate aftermath of Lily's disappearance. The other, in present tense, skips ahead in time to where Albert and Lily's little sister Olivia are out looking for her; she sent a note to Albert telling him that she's hiding in the "Last Good Place." The narrative is also interspersed with flashbacks showing the progression of Albert and Lily's relationship.
This book, you guys. I had a whole post written up on this book because it vexed me so. Right up until the end, I really, really liked it. I brought it to work with me because I was so sucked in. The characters are fantastic: Albert is shy and romantic but still does stupid teenager shit, Lily is basically the realistic version of a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, and Olivia and her complex feelings about her sister are especially wonderful. Ms. Beitia is an excellent writer, and I found myself writhing with envy at her descriptions and her dialogue. I didn't even mind that they used a trope that I think is really overdone in suspense novels.
But the last few chapters left me completely unsatisfied. I don't want to say too much because I don't want to spoil anything, but it was like I met this great guy, he took me out to a great dinner, we went back to his place... and then he ignored me all night to watch football. I'd say I enjoyed the previous chapters enough to make up for the ending, but I hope that the author's sophomore novel has a more fulfilling climax.
Also, a warning: this book includes an oblique description of sexual assault.
White Cat by Holly Black - In this AU America, about one in a thousand people is a curse worker: someone who can afflict another person for better or worse by touching them. Curses have been illegal since Prohibition, so curse working is largely controlled by organized crime.
Our hero, Cassel, is the only non-worker in a worker family, but what he lacks in magical abilities he makes up for in his skill with cons. (He's like baby Neal Caffrey!) Three years ago, he woke up over the corpse of his best friend Lila with a bloody knife and no memory of how he got there, and when the story begins, he's catapulted into events that will start to unravel these mysteries.
This is a ridiculously enjoyable book. I haven't been able to get into any of Ms. Black's stuff previously, but I ate this up - I settled it to read it a little before bed, and then I couldn't stop until I finished. Ms. Black handles the darker elements with a light touch that I appreciated, and Cassel is a very likable protagonist. The world is fascinating, and the worker family politics have lots of delicious moral ambiguity that I know some of you will love.
I wish that there were more characters I could have liked as much as Cassel, but for a story like this, it's more effective when the protagonist doesn't know who he can trust. The ending had me frothing for a sequel, which will thankfully be released in April.
Next up (in no particular order):
Half World
Graceling
The Magicians
The Hunger Games
The Monstrumologist
The Maze Runner
Prophecy of the Sisters (represented by my dream agent - MY HOMEWORK)
Instead, I thought I'd do a few mini book reviews/recs, since I'm getting some books read again! I'm going to keep 'em fairly spoiler-free, but if you're the type who likes to know as little as possible about the book before going in, I would give this post a miss.
The Last Good Place of Lily Odilon by Sara Beitia - Albert Morales, the new kid in the quintessential Sleepy Small Town, goes to spend the night with his girlfriend Lily, recently reformed party girl and free spirit extraordinaire. She gets up in the middle of the night to get a drink of water... and never comes back.
This YA suspense novel has two main timelines: one, in past tense, follows Albert in the immediate aftermath of Lily's disappearance. The other, in present tense, skips ahead in time to where Albert and Lily's little sister Olivia are out looking for her; she sent a note to Albert telling him that she's hiding in the "Last Good Place." The narrative is also interspersed with flashbacks showing the progression of Albert and Lily's relationship.
This book, you guys. I had a whole post written up on this book because it vexed me so. Right up until the end, I really, really liked it. I brought it to work with me because I was so sucked in. The characters are fantastic: Albert is shy and romantic but still does stupid teenager shit, Lily is basically the realistic version of a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, and Olivia and her complex feelings about her sister are especially wonderful. Ms. Beitia is an excellent writer, and I found myself writhing with envy at her descriptions and her dialogue. I didn't even mind that they used a trope that I think is really overdone in suspense novels.
But the last few chapters left me completely unsatisfied. I don't want to say too much because I don't want to spoil anything, but it was like I met this great guy, he took me out to a great dinner, we went back to his place... and then he ignored me all night to watch football. I'd say I enjoyed the previous chapters enough to make up for the ending, but I hope that the author's sophomore novel has a more fulfilling climax.
Also, a warning: this book includes an oblique description of sexual assault.
White Cat by Holly Black - In this AU America, about one in a thousand people is a curse worker: someone who can afflict another person for better or worse by touching them. Curses have been illegal since Prohibition, so curse working is largely controlled by organized crime.
Our hero, Cassel, is the only non-worker in a worker family, but what he lacks in magical abilities he makes up for in his skill with cons. (He's like baby Neal Caffrey!) Three years ago, he woke up over the corpse of his best friend Lila with a bloody knife and no memory of how he got there, and when the story begins, he's catapulted into events that will start to unravel these mysteries.
This is a ridiculously enjoyable book. I haven't been able to get into any of Ms. Black's stuff previously, but I ate this up - I settled it to read it a little before bed, and then I couldn't stop until I finished. Ms. Black handles the darker elements with a light touch that I appreciated, and Cassel is a very likable protagonist. The world is fascinating, and the worker family politics have lots of delicious moral ambiguity that I know some of you will love.
I wish that there were more characters I could have liked as much as Cassel, but for a story like this, it's more effective when the protagonist doesn't know who he can trust. The ending had me frothing for a sequel, which will thankfully be released in April.
Next up (in no particular order):
Half World
Graceling
The Magicians
The Hunger Games
The Monstrumologist
The Maze Runner
Prophecy of the Sisters (represented by my dream agent - MY HOMEWORK)
