Book Review: Geekerella

Author: Ashley Poston
Genre: Contemporary
Published: 2017, Quirk Books
Rating: 4.25/5 Stars

Classic sci-fi show Starfield means everything to Elle Wittimer, especially after her father passes away. When ExcelsiCon, her father's own geeky convention, announces a Starfield cosplay contest, Elle knows she has to enter and win. Meanwhile, teen heartthrob Darien Freeman must deal with the pressure of portraying Starfield's beloved main character in the new movie reboot. It's the role of his dreams, but fans aren't convinced that Darien understands its importance, despite the fact that he is a die-hard Starfield fan. These two characters cross paths and change each other's lives in the most unexpected way.

This book is a straight-up Cinderella retelling, so if you're not into that, I'd avoid it. Cinderella is one of my least favorite fairy tales, but I read this book because the story sounded so fun and different. Turns out I was right! I never felt like I was getting caught up in the "Cinderella-y" elements of the story; it read like a quick, enjoyable contemporary.

The two main characters were such great protagonists. Elle and Darien come from very different environments, but they both dealt with their own relatable struggles. Elle was hard-working, resilient, and resourceful. Darien was likeable, honest, and charming. The progression of their relationship was believable, much more so than the traditional Cinderella story.

The show Starfield was really interesting to read about, and I wish I could see an episode of it. The author did a great job providing enough details to make the reader care about this fictional TV series. As a fairly geeky person myself, reading about ExcelsiCon was awesome. I have been to Book Con once, but never something fandom related. It makes me wish I could go to one.

If you like contemporaries, cute romances, or fairy tale retellings, then I highly recommend Geekerella. If you're a part of any fandoms, especially sci-fi fandoms, then I think you'd enjoy this book.

Book Review: Sabriel

Author: Garth Nix
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 1995, HarperCollins
Rating: 4/5 Stars

Sabriel's father is the Abhorsen, a mage charged with making sure the dead stay dead on the Old Kingdom side of the Wall. When Sabriel's father goes missing, she must leave her the safety of her boarding school to search for him. She is unprepared and a bit of a novice when it comes to magic, but with the help of a few companions, Sabriel must try to stop an evil that threatens both sides of the Wall.

This book is the first in a series, and it very much feels that way. There is a lot of setup and world-building, but it never felt boring or info-dumpy to me. I read this quite quickly for a fantasy book.

Sabriel was the exact kind of main character that I like. She was level-headed and smart, but she wasn't perfect. She did things wrong, and she didn't know how to get out of every bad situation. I also liked Mogget, her magical cat-companion. Mogget was quite the mysterious character - I'm hoping we find out more about him in future books. He was there to help Sabriel, but he was sarcastic and not always helpful. He was asleep for a decent part of the book, actually. Typical cat.

I'm not quite sure how I feel about Touchstone, the male lead and the love interest, just yet. I thought his relationship with Sabriel was a little odd at first, but I grew to like him more as the story went on. Something I wasn't a fan of was the transformation of their friendship into a romance. It felt out of nowhere to me, but that's my biggest complaint about the book.

The villain and all of the dead zombie-like things were satisfyingly creepy and threatening. I don't have too much to say about Sabriel since it's the first book in a series, but I will be picking up the sequel soon. I look forward to seeing how the plot and characters develop.

April Wrap-Up

Trying to be more consistent here! I've missed posting, and it's something that I can do while watching baseball, since it's that time of the year again (go Cubs!).

Crystal Storm by Morgan Rhodes

4/5 Stars

Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel

4.5/5 Stars

Descent by Jay Bonansinga

3/5 Stars

Cat Stories by James Herriot

4/5 Stars

Heartless by Marissa Meyer

4/5 Stars

Big Mushy Happy Lump by Sarah Andersen

5/5 Stars

Hunted by Meagan Spooner

4.25/5 Stars

Sabriel by Garth Nix

4/5 Stars

The Cat Who Went to Paris by Peter Gethers

3/5 Stars

Geekerella by Ashley Poston

4/5 Stars

Top Five Wednesday: Favorite SFF Cover Art

I think most readers appreciate a nicely-done book cover, and science fiction and fantasy books tend to have some of the most appealing covers out there. I know this post is a couple days late, but I thought it would be an easy one to get me back into blogging again. Here are five of my favorite SFF covers! Top Five Wednesday is run by Sam from Thoughts on Tomes. If you are interested in participating, here is the Goodreads page with all of the topics.

1. Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey

I have yet to start this series, although I plan to this summer, but every time I see this book on my shelf it catches my attention. The bright fuchsia title and the clean lettering are bold and sharp, and the background image is so deliciously science fiction-y that I can't help but love it. 

2. Ten Thousand Skies Above You by Claudia Gray

I, like pretty much everyone else, love all the covers in this trilogy, but the second book's cover is my favorite. There's just something I like about the yellow and blue contrast. This series has covers that reflect the story, too, which I appreciate; the illustrations depict places the characters visit, and the flipped images convey the idea of parallel universes. I originally bought this series because of the covers (plus I liked some of Claudia Gray's other books), but honestly it's become one of my favorite trilogies.

3. The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

Again, this entire series has gorgeous covers, but the fourth book has my vote for best cover. I love the softness of the brush strokes, and the colors are just so pleasing to look at. It gives off a feeling of ethereal mystery, which is precisely the vibe of the book.

4. A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi
I have yet to read The Star-Touched Queen (also a gorgeous cover) or this book yet, but they are high on my TBR list. I love this cover mostly because of the colors; that deep green is one of my favorite colors ever. I also really like the shooting stars and the delicate border, as well as the fact that this book is a bit shiny.

5. Reawakened by Colleen Houck
This image does not do this book justice. It's got one of those almost velvety covers. The tiny details are more noticeable, and parts of it are shimmery. This is one of my favorite book covers of all time, but unfortunately, I didn't like the content all that much. I quit this book a few days ago after reading half of it.

Top Five Wednesday: Books I Will Never Read

As much as I love talking about books I want to read and books I enjoy, I also love talking about books I'm not interested in. Honestly, I wish there were more books that I didn't want to read; that would make my "so many books, so little time" problem better. Top Five Wednesday was created by Ginger Reads Lainey and is currently run by Sam from Thoughts on Tomes. If you are interested in participating, here is the Goodreads page.

1. The Maze Runner by James Dashner
I don't really have anything against this series, I just have no interest in it. I saw the first movie and thought it was okay. I've heard a lot of negative things about the subsequent books, so I'll be avoiding this one. If I'm ever really desperate for a dystopian and I'm out of options, then I'll read this - but that is super unlikely.

2. Looking for Alaska by John Green
I've read two John Green books and was underwhelmed by both of them. There's something about his writing that I just don't connect with, and his characters are a little too pretentious for my tastes. I don't feel like I'm missing anything by not reading this book.

3. Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard
I read Red Queen and didn't completely hate it, but the more I think about it, the less I care. I don't feel like investing time and/or money into a series that I am lukewarm at best about.

4. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
I once wished to read this book. However, this series is just too long. Every book is massive, and I'm just not interested enough. I might watch the show at some point, but I have so many long fantasy series that I'd rather read than this one.

5. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by Jack Thorne & John Tiffany
Probably the most controversial book on this list, although it's not technically a book. I really don't want to read a play that's considered the 8th Harry Potter story - I'd rather have a book. If I can't get any insight on characters' thoughts, emotions, and motives, then I don't want to read it. I've heard there are an insane amount of plot holes in this story as well. I just don't care to read this.

August Wrap-Up

I'm trying to get back in the swing of posting, and I haven't been reading a ton of YA books or novels in general, so I thought I'd do a wrap-up to make things easy on myself. You'll see a common theme here...

The Walking Dead Volume 2 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

4/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 3 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

4/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 4 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

4/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 5 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

Rise of the Governor by Robert Kirkman & Jay Bonansinga

4/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 6 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 7 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

4/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 8 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

Bitter of Tongue by Cassandra Clare & Sarah Rees Brennan

3/5 Stars

The Road to Woodbury by Robert Kirkman & Jay Bonansinga

3/5 Stars

Star Wars: Princess Leia by Mark Waid & Terry Dodson

4/5 Stars

The Fiery Trial by Cassandra Clare & Maureen Johnson

3/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 9 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 10 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

4/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 11 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 12 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 13 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 14 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 15 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

The Walking Dead Volume 16 by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Cliff Rathburn

5/5 Stars

Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan

4/5 Stars

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

5/5 Stars

United as One by Pittacus Lore

3.5/5 Stars

Ghostly Echoes by William Ritter

3.75/5 Stars

Book Review: Jackaby

Author: William Ritter
Genre; Historical/Paranormal
Published: 2014, Algonquin Young Readers
Rating: 4.25/5 Stars

Abigail Rook makes her way to the United States in 1892 after a failed adventure in paleontology. She desperately needs a job, and she happens upon an ad for an investigative assistant. This leads her to the home of R.F. Jackaby, an eccentric, scatter-brained detective who specializes in things normally unseen. Abigail is tossed into the fray immediately, joining Jackaby as he checks out a murder scene, and she becomes involved in world of crime and impossible creatures.

I had heard so many mixed things about this book that my expectations were average to low. I don't know if that had any effect on my enjoyment of it, but I thought Jackaby was incredibly entertaining and fun. Goodreads describes it as a mix of Doctor Who and Sherlock, and that's probably the most accurate description for this book. It's quite short and fast-paced, so I flew through it in just a couple hours. 

I loved the characters. I was impressed by how well-rounded and dynamic they were given the length of the book. Jackaby reminds me very much of Matt Smith in Doctor Who, which I appreciated. Abigail was smart, bold, and brave - she didn't shy away from speaking her mind. 

The minor characters were great as well. They actually served a purpose in the story and weren't just taking up space, and I can see the potential for more character development for them in the subsequent books in this series.

I thought the plot was compelling - it definitely kept me interested the entire time. If you are very squeamish or easily scared, maybe pass on this book. It's not all that bloody or frightening, but there are some scenes that are a  bit gross and creepy. For me, it was just the right amount of gross and creepy. Not over the top, but realistic for the events of the story. If you're looking for something fun with entertaining characters, I highly recommend Jackaby. I've already read the sequel and can't wait for the third book!