Kiss the Girls

 

Kiss The Girls by James Patterson is a thriller starring the famous detective, Alex Cross, as he is swept into a kidnaping murder case while looking for his niece.

While on the case, Cross meets the only victim who managed to escape and survive---barely.  Her name is Dr. Kate McTiernan and Alex Cross soon comes to see her as the strongest woman he knows. 

Through the course of the investigation---and his friendship with Kate---Cross discovers that there were actually two killers working and collaborating together coast to coast.  And it will take getting into the minds of two sadistic murderers to stop them. 

I'm not a big fan of Patterson, as an author or from what I've seen of him as a person, truth be told.  Just a personal preference.  I was, however, a fan of the storyline itself.  It wasn't predictable, it kept me on my toes, and when the author let the reader sneak a peak into the minds of the killers, it alleviated my boredom of being in Cross's mind.

It wasn't that I didn't like the character.  It was that I couldn't connect to him.  He didn't feel developed in any way but surface and felt extremely two-dimensional and repetitive. 

What I did like about Alex Cross was that he screwed up.  He wasn't the all-knowing detective a lot of the other characters thought him to be.  He accused the wrong person and even ended up getting into a pretty remarkable fight because of it. 

Overall, the book was okay, and Patterson fans would most likely enjoy it.  While I would recommend it to those who like the genre and style, I wouldn't read it a second time.

My rating: 6 out of 10.

 

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson  follows the story of disgraced journalist, Mikael Blomkvist, as he is enlisted by the renowned Vanger family to discover the decades old secret of what (or who) happened to the beautiful Harriet Vanger. 

 

As he dives into his new life---rather reluctantly, I might add---Mikael becomes immersed in the histories and deep, dark secrets of the Vanger family.  Before long, his employer hires a young private investigator with extraordinary skills to aid in his ventures.  Together, Mikael and Lisbeth Salander---who is dark and twisted in her own right---unearth more horrors and skeletons than any one family has the right to harbor. 

 

Okay, so this book was actually good---sort of.  It was well written, a good story, and unpredictable enough to keep me interested---once I actually got into it.  However, this was one of the most disturbing, screwed up stories I've ever read. And that's saying something.  Now, I'm all for a twisted plot, but man, this one takes the cake.  So much so that I have no intention of reading the next two in the trilogy.

The original title in Sweden was actually supposed to be Men Who Hate Women. That, to me, seems much more apt than The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.    Rapists, kidnapers, murderers, sadists, womanizers.  I swear, there wasn't a redeeming character in the bunch. 

The book was hard to read for me and not all pleasant, but even I'll admit that the plot twists were brilliant.  I thought for certain that I had it figured out---twice---but then the rug would be ripped out from under me.  I even did have it figured out once and second-guessed myself.  Go figure.

So, if you're a sap and enjoy likeable characters and happy endings (like me), this is not the book for you.  But, if you're a fan of dark and twisty, it's well worth the read.

My biased rating: 6 out of 10.

The Spectacular Now

***SPOILER ALERT:  THIS REVIEW POSSIBLY GIVES AWAY THE ENDING***

(Sorry, for some reason, I couldn't distance myself from this one the way I usually do.  My review addresses key things from the book so if you haven't read it or don't want to take the chance, please skip this one. I had seen the movie first, so it wasn't a big deal to me, but fair warning.)

 

The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp is the tale of the classic party boy who prefers to live in the present moment---with an abundance of alcohol---instead of looking forward to the future and actually doing something with his life. 

 

Sutter Keely is the epitome of the carefree high school boy.  All fun, all the time.  No sense of responsibility or consequences.  No regard for commitment past the "fantabulous" now.  Even when he loses his girlfriend, becomes distant with his best friend, disappoints his family, doesn't graduate and loses his job, he stays stuck in the now---probably from fear of looking beyond and actually testing himself to do anything but drink and have fun.

 

And then Sutter meets the shy and quiet Aimee, a girl who has been a pushover her entire life, and Sutter sees befriending the girl as an opportunity to "save her soul."  He doesn't plan for them to fall in love, but even then his emotions seem as if they're on the surface only because he doesn't see or want a future.  While he does help her gain the confidence she so desperately needs and to take charge of her own life, only heartbreak comes from loving a boy who deep down sees nothing of his own worth and goes along with her ideas of the future because he doesn't want to say no.

 

In the end, nothing really changes for Sutter Keely, except that the rest of his world has moved on while he is very much stuck in the now.

 

This book was amazing.  It was funny and entertaining while still portraying a deeper message beneath the humor, which I loved. Unfortunately, it also struck a nerve with me.

 

See, I know Sutter.  Dated him, even.  A real life version, at least. And I found it terribly sad that he let his fears and doubts dictate his life while still managing to live in utter denial, thinking this was how life was supposed to be.  He wasn't happier than anyone else.  He just medicated with alcohol so he didn't have to think about how unhappy and self-conscious he actually was.  It was like he had a self-destruct button that he couldn't stop pushing, but he didn't care because he had blissfully and blindly taped a sign saying "The Spectacular Now" over it. 

 

So, while the story was well written, I have seen it play out in real life---which is also what makes the book authentic and wonderful.  I watched someone I cared about do the exact same thing and in the end, I couldn't help but hate Sutter a little bit for wasting what could have been a legendary life, even if he did always have good intentions. 

 

Still, it is a book I would (and have) recommend.  My rating: 8 out of 10.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky is a coming of age story of an awkward teenage boy (whom today would most likely be diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome) named Charlie.  The story is written as a series of letters from Charlie addressed to "Dear Friend."  

The letters begin on Charlie's first day of school when he befriends his English teacher, gets in a fight and deals with the suicide of a friend.  High school is looking pretty dismal for the wonderful Charlie until he meets a senior named Patrick and his stepsister, Sam.  Before he knows it, Charlie is swept away into a brand new world of high school, complete with best friends, first love, drugs, alcohol, parties, infinite songs, sex, relationship drama and the Rocky Horror Picture Show.  

While he doesn't say much and proves to be innocent and naive, Charlie has a heart of gold and sees everything.  As the letters span the length of his freshman year, Charlie learns deep dark secrets about his family, his friends, and himself; as well as the beauty of each and of life, itself.  

Personally, I loved this book.  The style was different than anything I had ever read before, but once I got used to it, I couldn't put it down.  I laughed, I cried, I loved and I lost, just like you should in a fantastic book.  Chbosky portrayed the beauty of life, love, friendship and heartache---especially when experience with the emotions of a teenager---as both simple and complex all at once. 

My rating: 10 out of 10.

Dark Witch

Dark Witch by Nora Roberts is the first book in the Cousins O'Dwyer trilogy set in modern day Ireland, but dealing with an ancient curse.  Iona Sheehan thinks she knows what she's up against when she leaves her life in America and moves to Ireland to meet her cousins, Branna and Connor O'Dwyer.  She knows she is one of the three to inherit the powers of the Dark Witch, Sorcha, who lived and died in the thirteenth century.  She knows she will have to unite with her cousins and use the magic inside her to defeat the evil sorcerer, Cabhan.  What she doesn't know is how inexperienced she truly is.  Or how strong.  

She's always known she has an affinity for horses, can talk to them, understand them even, but what she doesn't know is that her love of horses will lead her to three new friends who will soon become like family and an integral part of the circle that will one day defeat Cabhan.  Or that one of those people would be the deliciously sexy Irish cowboy, Boyle McGrath.

Now Iona must work to discover herself, her power and her heart...before it's too late.

I have conflicted feelings regarding this book.  For one, it's Nora Roberts and I love her work.  The story was well written and if you had never read her books before, or even just a few, it would be really good.  However, when you've read as many of her books as I have, you start to notice that the story line and even the characters are repetitive, the characters are more type-cast than developed, the tone is clipped and rushed, and the story arc is thoroughly predictable.  

But don't let that discount the story.  It's witty, funny, has enough laughter and humor to counteract the tension and the danger.  And the love scenes, well...let's just say they are hot and steamy, in true Roberts fashion.  

Overall, while I'm still slightly disappointed, it remains a book that I would recommend to those who enjoy romance.  

My stingy rating system: 7 out of 10.

The Fault In Our Stars

The Fault In Out Stars by John Green is a beautiful, albeit tragic, love story about two teenagers with cancer.  Hazel Lankston has never been anything but terminal and, while she's not thrilled about it, she has accepted her eminent demise.  But then meets Augustus Waters and her once isolated existence is thrown into a delicious uproar.

This is the tragic love story we should be teaching to our children.  This is the Romeo and Juliet of our time.  Two star-crossed lovers meet and fall in love, but they don't selfishly kill themselves because the universe won't let them be together.  Instead they fight like hell to experience what they can and enjoy every day with each other because forever was not an option.  There is a fault in their stars, not in them.

This is not the typical cancer story.  It's not about survival, beating death or even young love.  It is about appreciating and experiencing everything this world has to offer while we're here with the ability to appreciate and experience it. 

Green wrote a novel that was so incredibly beautiful, I felt like I, personally, had been gifted with the amazing Augustus Waters, himself.  The Fault In Our Stars was moving and funny, tragic and heartbreaking.

I went into this story knowing there was no chance of happily ever after.  And don't get me wrong, I cried---hard---multiple times.  But it was not what I was expecting.  It was oh, so much more. 

If you want a story that shines brighter because forever comes too soon, I highly recommend The Fault In Our Stars.  As far as amazing romances go, John Green hit this one out of the park.

My rating: 10 out of 10.

(I don't rate them that high often, but lately I have been reading some extremely good books.)

Allegiant

 

 

Allegiant by Veronica Roth is the third and final book in the dystopian Divergent series.  In the final chapters chronicling Tris and Four's journey, the rebel group of faction loyalists that call themselves the Allegiant prepare to go to war with the Factionless to regain control of the city.

 

Meanwhile, the couple---along with a handpicked group of friends and Peter---travel outside the fence of the city with the support of the Allegiant.  Once outside the fence, an entirely new world awaits and nothing is as it seems.  Friends once thought dead are still alive and the people they meet will drop a bombshell that will change Tris and Tobias's perception of reality forever.

 

No matter where they go, revolution seems to be the theme of the day.  In the city, outside the fence, it doesn't matter.  And somehow, Four is in the center of all of it.  Which means that, like it or not, so is Tris.  This time, however, they're not always on the same side.

 

As one danger ties into another, Tris, Four and the others are the only ones who can and will try to stop two wars---though it will cost lives to do it and those sacrifices will be difficult to take.

 

I'll admit, Allegiant was just a little bit harder for me to get through. (Meaning I set it down maybe twice more than the previous two.)  I found all the revolutions  a bit of a stretch, to be honest.  It was always one thing after another for Tris and Tobias and I felt like they just couldn't catch a break.  But then Roth filled in the gaps, everything fell into place and I couldn't put that book down.

 

Although, truth be told, I was a wee bit apprehensive about finishing it.  No, scratch that.  I was just plain scared.  I had heard the rumors, though thankfully not the actual ending, and I knew most people hated the ending, some enough to boycott Veronica Roth all together.  So I went into the third book knowing it was not going to be a "happily ever after" storybook ending. 

 

When I finished the book I was not disappointed.  Not even a little bit.  Without giving anything away, I need to say that I applaud Veronica Roth for staying true to her characters, however heartbreaking it was to do so.  The story could not end any other way.  I thought the ending was beautiful and heart wrenching, but tragically necessary.  Well done, Ms. Roth.  Well done.

 

My rating: Still 10 out of 10.