The Selection series 1-3 by Kiera Cass

I had really, really high hopes for this series. My sister-in-law raved about how she couldn't put them down and just loved them. So I waited a couple years until the trilogy was complete, and then I found out she's working on another partner trilogy. Ugh. I checked out The Selection and The Elite to read on an 8 hour road trip followed by a week of camping, and even with their faults, they were good picks for the occasion. These books are essentially the Bachelor reality show plus royalty plus a dystopian society. Our protagonist is America, a class 5 citizen near the bottom of the ladder. Classes are ranked from 1, royalty, to 8, the homeless. The prince is looking for a bride so they throw a competition where a few dozen girls are picked from all over the country and all different classes to come to the palace to try and win the prince's heart.

My main problem with these books is their lack of content. Everything that happens in the 3 installments could have easily been consolidated into 1 story. There are 3 main conflicts in the story: 1-America holds on to feelings she used to have for her old boyfriend Aspen, who in/conveniently shows up at the palace to work as a guard, making it impossible for America to forget and move on.
2-America has a very hard time deciding how much she likes Prince Maxom, who happens to be an awesome guy, and she keeps flip flopping back and forth between wanting to go back to her old life with Aspen or become royalty with Maxom.
3-There is significant civil unrest and two different groups of rebels repeatedly attack the palace.
The first two conflicts in the stories I find highly annoying. America takes advantage of 2 good guys and leads them on for way too long. I just wanted to smack her upside the head to put some sense in her! So annoying. The third conflict with the rebels was the only thing that I felt gave the story some substance. The author could have developed this far more than she did, but instead focused on America's feelings about boys. I think she missed out on an opportunity to write a compelling story, rather than a fluff-filled teeny-bopper one.

Overall I did mostly enjoy the read, but I was also constantly annoyed at the lack of substance. Perhaps it's just my personality and taste preference; I don't watch the Bachelor and haven't much enjoyed the bits that I have seen; but I do enjoy dystopian stories and princess stories. I had hopes that this would be a truly awesome series. Sadly, it fell short.

3 out of 5

Firefight by Brandon Sanderson

I've been on a bit of a writing hiatus; not reading; no, never reading. Only writing. I'm not the hugest fan of writing but I never take much of a break from reading! Firefight, by Brandon Sanderson, is the second installment in the Reckoners series. As a general rule I don't read books until the series is complete because I very much hate waiting for the next part of the story. I'm not a patient enough person for that. But my sister-in-law, whose taste in literature closely resembles mine, read the first one (Steelheart) and implored me to do the same. It only took a few pages before I was hopelessly hooked, and now I wait over a year for each book like a sucker. But really, these books are totally worth it. They are an awesome blend of fantasy, super-powers, the conflict between good and evil, and there's just enough of a love story to keep my inner girl happy. Oftentimes, the second installment of a trilogy (and I do believe this is meant to be a trilogy, but I could be wrong) ends up being somewhat of a dud, but Firefight is just as exciting as Steelheart. I loved it. You should go read them both, even though you'll have to wait until March 2016 its conclusion. But trust me, you won't regret it!

4.5 out of 5 stars

Divergent series by Veronica Roth

I've been rereading a lot of my favorites lately, hence the lack of blogging. I actually finished the first two parts of the Divergent trilogy months ago but there was a wicked-long wait for Allegiant at the library. Now that I've finished, I can't say I'm all that impressed with the series as a whole. It has a few redeeming qualities, but overall I don't think Veronica Roth distinguishes her novels to stand out among the vast collection of other dystopian trilogies out there.

Definitely my favorite book of the three is Divergent, where we are introduced to Beatrice "Tris" Prior and the world in which she lives. Each year, all 16-year-olds take an aptitude test that will tell which faction he or she is best suited for. The brave go to Dauntless, the honest to Candor, the peaceful to Amity, the smart to Erudite, and the selfless to Abnegation. Tris's results are inconclusive, revealing an aptitude for 3 different factions. Unfortunately, it's not safe to be different and Tris must hide who she is if she wants to survive. She joins Dauntless, meets Tobias and other friends who help her realize her strength and desire for justice in the world.

Insurgent is all about revolution; the people rise up against their oppressors and strive to make their city better for everyone.

Allegiant continues after the revolution reveals that nothing has truly changed because the problems run deeper than they realized. Tris and co. learn what's outside their city and continue to fight the good fight for freedom.

My primary problems with the series are mostly in book 3, Allegiant, though Insurgent isn't too fantastic either. I felt the overall story (in book 3) was really weak. Its basically book 2 plot but on a larger scale. The main characters are running around the whole book but not accomplishing anything. Their end-all solution to the "bad guys" in charge who are about to do horrible things is just as unethical and wrong as what the bad guys are doing. If I'm going to root for the underdogs, they better have the moral high ground. It's inconsistent because, in the previous books, Tris and her friends do honor ethics, so it's weird that they all of the sudden abandon right and wrong in the name of the greater good.

I also don't enjoy what Roth does to the main character in the end. I don't want to give any obvious spoilers, but I'm an advocate for happy endings and I can't think of a single character who truly got a happy ending. That's depressing. I also always liked Tris's brother, Caleb. While their relationship is rightfully strained, it annoys me how Tris never takes an opportunity to make amends with him until it's too late. What a waste.

I think the first book is probably the best because it feels new and different with lots of mysteries still to uncover. In book 3 all your questions are suddenly answered in the first several chapters, leaving no more intrigue and a weak story line. I'm disappointed in the series as a whole; it showed so much potential but lost momentum and became a trilogy that I will forget about in no time.

Divergent: 4 out of 5 stars
Insurgent: 3 out of 5 stars
Allegiant: 2 out of 5 stars

The Giver by Lois Lowry

I'm not sure how I've gone my whole life without reading this book. Most people read it in elementary or middle school, but somehow I missed it.

**spoiler warning--I figure most people have read this book, but if you haven't and don't want to know the ending, you probably shouldn't read this post**

The Giver is a dystopian children's novel about a boy named Jonas. In his society, there are no emotions, good or bad, and it is set far in the future. Everyone is pretty much the same and everything is controlled. There is no color, no snow, no hills, no hot or cold. There is one person in the society who holds all the memories of these kinds of things and he is called the Receiver. Jonas is called to be the new receiver and is slowly given memories from the old receiver, who he calls the giver. They come up with a plan to change their society so one person wouldn't have to hold all the pain and memories for everyone else. Jonas escapes the society to give the people a chance to experience the memories for themselves. The story ends super ambiguously with Jonas weak and cold and climbing a big mountain searching for another civilization.

When I finished the book I was mad at how unclear the ending was. What happened to Jonas? Did he find people? Did their plan work? Or did he die there on the mountain? He was freezing, starving, and in the middle of nowhere. I'm inclined to believe that Jonas died up there, still believing that he was close to a new life.

What do you think the ending meant?

4 out of 5 stars

Matched trilogy by Ally Condie

I've had these books on my to-read list for a long, long time. At first I waited to read them because Reached, the final installment of the trilogy, wasn't published yet. Then I waited because there were 50+ holds on Reached at the library. Once the hold list got under 30 I decided I was tired of waiting and I was going to get started.

This trilogy has a typical dystopian setting, set in the future after society has fallen and a new Society has emerged. In the Society everyone is Matched with their ideal partner, disease is a thing of the past, and everyone is a contributing member to society. In the first book, Cassia is Matched with Xander, her best friend, but she is having feelings for Ky. Shouldn't she have the right to choose who she loves? In Crossed, book 2, Cassia has joined the rebellion and is working to bring down the Society. In Reached, the Society has fallen and Cassia, Xander, and Ky all have to work together to find a cure to a mutated disease that threatens to destroy the life they've been working for.

I'm not sure exactly how I feel about these books. Considering all the hype I heard, they weren't as good as I was expecting, but they were still worth reading. Entertaining, but not great. I feel like the love triangle theme is way overused in young adult fiction so I wasn't too happy about the Cassia, Ky, Xander situation, even though it all works out in the end. I was also annoyed by how much Ky and Xander adored Cassia. She's a nice girl and all but she's kind of an idiot. It's hard to love a series when you don't respect the main character.

Overall, I think these were entertaining books and an enjoyable read, but don't expect an amazingly original storyline, because you won't get it.

3 out of 5 stars

The Declaration; The Resistance; The Legacy by Gemma Malley

Well this was certainly an interesting trilogy to read! My sister recommended I read these books and they were definitely entertaining.

The Declaration is set in England in the future, around 2140 or so, and mankind has discovered a pill called Longevity that will enable the human body to live forever. Since nobody dies, the world becomes over-populated and they create the "Declaration," a document every citizen must sign, in which they promise not to produce children in exchange for eternal life. If you don't sign you are an Opt-Out, you may have a child but you may not take Longevity. There are very few Opt-Outs. Some people choose not to follow the rules though and have kids anyway. All these unauthorized children are called Surpluses and are taken from their parents to grow up in delegated Surplus Houses that educate them to become the most useful slaves they can be.

In one of these houses we meet our heroine, Anna Covey, known as Surplus Anna. She has an innate desire to please authority and has learned very well that she does not deserve to live because she is a drain on Mother Earth's resources. She strives to be a good Surplus and performs her work meticulously to try and please the house matron, a cruel woman who looks on the children she governs with disdain. Anna's world is turned upside down when a new boy named Peter (one of our heroes) comes to the House and challenges her ideas of right and wrong. He tries to convince her that not everyone believes children are criminals just for being born and tries to persuade her to escape with him.

 In "The Resistance" the story continues with Peter and Anna, after escaping the Surplus House, joining the Resistance group that fights Longevity and the man in charge of the company that produces it, Richard Pincent of Pincent Pharma. The Resistance believes that children are the future and that no one should live forever. We are introduced to the resistance leader Pip (featured on the cover) and Peter's half brother Jude.

 The fight against Longevity continues in "The Legacy." People are dying across the world from a virus that has mutated and Longevity cannot fight. Richard Pincent is desperate to find a cure and avoids blame for the deaths by pointing the finger at the underground rebels. Our characters must pull together to bring down Richard Pincent and expose the truth.

So I liked a lot of things about these books, particularly the idea of immortality and its practical effects. What would happen to the world if there was no death? Humankind is on the constant search for ways to decrease sickness and suffering and extend life. But do we really want to live forever? I like that the author focused on the ramifications of eternal life, the most severe of which (in my opinion) is the inability to have children. There is nothing I love more in this world than my daughter. I cannot imagine what I would do without her. I plan to have more children and cannot imagine the government telling me I could not have them, or taking them away from me if I did and being branded a criminal.

I did not like some of the political implications I felt the author was making throughout the books. Particularly branding the conservatives as the bad guys who choose eternal life and make kids slaves and making the liberals the heroes who save the world. I guess I only take offense to that because I'm conservative. This isn't a political blog so I won't comment further.

Overall I liked the idea of the story. Sometimes the books (especially #2) were a bit tedious to read, but overall I would recommend them to others.

3 out of 5 stars

The Hunger Games; Catching Fire; Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Wow. I just finished the final book in The Hunger Games trilogy this afternoon and I'm not entirely sure how to blog about it. I was recommended these books months ago and told that I HAD to read them because they were amazing. I put off reading them primarily because they were never available at the library and I always had something else to read. My mom was the first person to recommend them to me, she heard about them from her book club. Then my sister Teresa read them and advised that I have all three books on hand when I started because the story is continuous and we all know how frustrating it is to finish a cliffhanger ending and not have the sequel available. So when I visited my family for Thanksgiving I was able to borrow all three books at once since my dad had recently purchased them. I read the first 2 chapters of The Hunger Games on Sunday night after coming home from Thanksgiving with the family and knew right away that these books were going to be a dangerous read with my upcoming full-time work week. I finished book 1 Tuesday evening, Catching Fire on Thursday evening, and Mockingjay on Saturday afternoon (today). I read for a few minutes in the morning before going in to work, during my hour lunch break, my evening work out at the gym, and for about an hour or so after dinner before bed. These were some intensely difficult books to put down.

I don't want to tell much about the plot because I don't think I could do it justice and I also don't want to give anything away for those who are currently reading them or will soon do so in the future. If you'd like a plot synopsis you can read about it here for The Hunger Games, and just do a little snooping on Google and you can easily find reviews for Catching Fire and Mockingjay. But just as a warning, I probably will end up giving things away unintentionally, so if you really don't want any spoilers whatsoever you should probably stop reading now.

There are a few things that I've been thinking about since I finished reading. For one, I am impressed by how much I care about the characters Collins created in her story. I felt genuine anxiety when Peeta was captured, sorrow when Finnick was killed, amusement with Haymitch, inspired by Katniss' courage, fear when I could see no way out for the heroes. Katniss, who is the voice of the story, became an especially real character, almost like a best friend or a sister, or perhaps myself in some strange, alternate reality. I often became frustrated by her inability to see her relationships with others clearly and her ineptitude in communicating her feelings to those she cares most about. I really, really love Peeta. Collins did a beautiful job in developing his character and relationship with Katniss. I think I was somewhere toward the end of book 1 when I decided that I really wanted Katniss to fall in love with Peeta, even though we had been briefly introduced to her best friend Gale (who I was initially rooting for as the love interest) before the hunger games started. There were also several minor characters who were introduced briefly in the beginning and after making multiple brief appearances throughout took on a great significance toward the overall story. Particularly Darius, the redheaded Avox girl, Madge, Greasy Sae, Rue... I loved Collins' use of her characters to tell the story.

Upon my completion of Mockingjay I felt like I had read a story of deep significance, though I can't really put in to words what it is. Sort of making me want to take more interest in politics, but while also making me think about all the good things I have in life. It reminded me a bit of the gladiator games in ancient Rome, how people took entertainment in forcing people to fight to the death. Collins was inspired by the Greek myth of Theseus, where the city of Athens was forced to provide boys and girls to be killed by the minotaur. The idea of taking pleasure in watching children kill each other was a horrible one to deal with. In fact, there were a lot of horrific things that Katniss and the others had to experience. I can't imagine having to live the kind of life that was common in Panem.

I really loved how Collins would quote or allude to things throughout all of the books; it really made the story stronger and made you pay attention to every detail. It was kind of fun to find obscure references to previous events and remember where they came from and what had happened. Her use of symbols was also fabulous; I particularly loved the theme of the mockingjay.

I think that everyone should read these books. They are moving, exciting, inspirational, sad, humorous, disturbing, and beautiful. They were all I could think about for the 5 days it took me to read them. They fully captivated me and left me happy I had chosen to take the ride.

5 stars