Book Advice Needed!
All right, if you've been following this blog for over a year then you know about my grandparents tradition. Every Christmas they take all of their grandkids out to eat, and then to the bookstore to choose books for their Christmas presents. I am incapable of choosing right away, so my grandma gives me time to make a list and then go home and think about it.
That's where you come in.
I've narrowed it down to seven books, but I want your opinions on them. Most of these I'd never even heard of before today (which is so exciting!), which means I'll need all the help I can get. If you've read any/all PLEASE take a minute to comment with your thoughts. In general I'm looking for two things:
By which I mean does it have more than 2 f-words. I'm fine with pretty much anything else. So here are the books:
THANK YOU! I'll let y'all know which ones I choose! And if you're curious, here's the list from last year.
That's where you come in.
I've narrowed it down to seven books, but I want your opinions on them. Most of these I'd never even heard of before today (which is so exciting!), which means I'll need all the help I can get. If you've read any/all PLEASE take a minute to comment with your thoughts. In general I'm looking for two things:
Is this book good?
and
Does it have a lot of harsh profanity?
By which I mean does it have more than 2 f-words. I'm fine with pretty much anything else. So here are the books:
 Death Watch Ari Berk (Goodreads | Amazon) |  Void Rhiannon Lassiter (Goodreads | Amazon) |
 Shadowcry Jenna Burtenshaw (Goodreads | Amazon) |  Invasion Jon Lewis (Goodreads | Amazon) |
 Witchlanders Lena Coakley (Goodreads | Amazon) |  the Thin Executioner Darren Shan (Goodreads | Amazon) |
 Shatter Me Tahereh Mafi (Goodreads | Amazon) | |
THANK YOU! I'll let y'all know which ones I choose! And if you're curious, here's the list from last year.
All review content © Enna Isilee, Squeaky Books 2007-2011
The only one I've heard of is Shatter Me, and everything has been positive. I talked to a friend and she said it wasn't a romance masquerading as paranormal, so hope that helps!
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely on my TBR list.
And AWESOME Christmas gift! Your grandparents are cool!
I just finished Witchlanders. I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would from the description and the excerpt that I read. It seemed a little young for YA and a bit mature for MG. I don't usually notice swearing, so I can't promise anything, but I think there was maybe just a little bit. Not bad at all. If you like fantasy you'll likely enjoy Witchlanders.
ReplyDeleteI've read Shatter Me and Invasion.
ReplyDeleteI loved Shatter Me - it's a different take on dystopia with a paranormal twist.
I really enjoyed Invasion, it's different which is refreshing.
Valerie
StuckInBooks.com
I've read Shatter Me, and to be honest, I thought the romance totally overpowered everything else. Plus it follows the usual dystopian theme, so nothing really original there.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of any of these, but based on the summaries I think Shadowcry sounds awesome, and Shatter Me could be really good too. Thanks for this list, I may read some of them myself!
ReplyDeleteDeath Watch-I am almost 100% sure that it is clean. I thought it was a little long (500+ pages) but it's very atmospheric.
ReplyDeleteWitchlanders-Different from a lot of YA with 2 Male POVs but I would actually definitely recommend...
The Thin Executioner-One of my favorite books I read this year. Pretty sure language is clean but there are some darker elements.
Shatter Me-I thought the romance was WAY too much; pages of them kissing and how it feels for them to touch-gag me! The ending does pick up though.
Sorry, no advice but of all the covers Shadowcry wins in my eyes. Good luck. I wish I had relatives that did that for me.
ReplyDeleteDeath Watch: Fear not, for no F-Bombs are dropped. This novel is quite excellent. I'm teaching it now in 5 college classes. It is rich and compelling in people and place. You can read a few quick and helpful reviews on the author's webpage:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ariberk.com/deathwatch.html
I haven't read it, but since Witchlanders is a fantasy adventure story I can't imagine there'd be much modern day cursing. I have it out from the library so I can check back after I've read it and let you know for sure though.
ReplyDeleteWitchlanders was very original.
ReplyDeleteand loved Shatter Me =)
Hey!! I recently read Shatter Me and loved it, but it is heavy on the romance and wordy, so if you don't like that..... Also, we did a content review on it.
ReplyDeleteI think Austin may have read Invasion, but I can't remember. He wrote The Grey Griffins series, which was pretty good. Can't wait to hear what you pick!