2-for-1: A book review and movie review

Friday I saw “Snow White and the Huntsman” and yesterday I finished GRAVEMINDER by Melissa Marr. So I’m going to kill two bird with one stone – or kill two reviews with one post?

Both good. Highly recommend.

The End.

What? Oh, okay. More detail.

As with The Avengers, I was happy to see that Snow White and The Huntsman was not just two and a half hours worth of CGI battles. But the CGI stuff was pretty good. Charlize Theron stole the show as the evil Queen Ravenna. Kristen Stewart was not as bad as I feared as Snow White, although shades of Bella Swan definitely came through. But I don’t want to get mired down in what I think of KStew’s acting.

One of the parts of the movie that was most pleasantly surprising for me was Bob Hoskins as one of the seven dwarves. I liked that they CGI’d the dwarves allowing them to cast pretty much anyone they wanted to in those roles. Bob Hoskins was a surprise to me because whenever I think of him, I can only picture his silly roles in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” and “Hook.” He was excellent as a more serious character in this film. Ian McShane and Toby Jones were also excellent. (Side note: Did you know that Toby Jones did the voice of Dobby in the Harry Potter movies? I didn’t!)

What I wish they had done a better job on was the only-hinted-at triangle between Snow White, the Huntsman and William (Snow’s childhood friend). The potential was there to expand upon that story line but they really didn’t.

I’d give Snow White and the Huntsman four stars out of five. Worth the time and money… and even the popcorn stomach ache afterward.

GRAVEMINDER by Melissa Marr gets more like 4.5 or five stars out of five. But, then again, I unabashedly love Melissa Marr. I have since I picked up WICKED LOVELY. I was actually hesitant to read GRAVEMINDER because it sounded so different from the WICKED LOVELY series. But she did not disappoint.

This is Marr’s first adult fiction book.

The story follows the events in the small town of Claysville where the people, centuries ago, made a pact with the mysterious Mr. D, who rules the land of the dead. They would have good health and long life (barring accidents or murders). In exchange one woman – the Graveminder – must always tend to the dead and keep them from walking again. Rebbekah is slated as the next Graveminder but she doesn’t know it until the murder of her grandmother, the previous Graveminder, brings her back to Claysville. The Graveminder always has a partner – the Undertaker – to help her and to protect her. Byron is equally clueless that he will be the next Undertaker.

Marr builds a fantastic story by giving out only enough information to keep you guessing and piecing things together bit by bit. She also builds a rich, interesting “world” in the land of the dead that Bek and Byron must visit.

The relationship between Bek and Byron is interesting and explores philosophical questions about whether they’d be attracted to each other if they weren’t (for lack of a better description) already genetically pre-disposed for each other in their roles. Rebbekah’s character is a little irritating in the way that she is so indecisive about Byron and Byron is equally irritating in his unwavering devotion to her, even though she is constantly drawing him in and then pushing him away.

All-in-all a great read and I found it hard to put down. The supporting characters and sub-plots were well-developed and not gratuitous, I thought.

And that’s it! What book are you reading right now? Have you seen Snow White and the Huntsman? What did you think? I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Book review: Anna Dressed in Blood

Before I get to the book review – a quick note about Mother’s Day. In general, I am not a big fan. I feel like this is one of those “made up holidays” that somebody invented to boost the greeting card, flower and chocolate industries for a day. It’s nice enough that there’s a day to recognize the importance of mothers. But really, I feel like every single day is Mother’s Day. Every day I have at least one moment where I realize what an unbelievable privilege it is to watch these two amazing people that my husband and I have been charged with grow into fantastic young women. Maybe it’s just the ages that they are at (9 and 13). It’s an age where they are learning and creating and doing and developing. They are inspiring to me. And I am the lucky one in this scenario. So, happy Mother’s Day to all the other lucky moms out there.

On to the book review! I had heard great things about ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD by Kendare Blake and fleetingly thought I should pick it up some time, but with so many other books on my TBR list, I didn’t really expect to get to it. I’m so glad I did! The following is the description from Goodreads:

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.
So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.
When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.
And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.

For starters, what a great premise. Cas kills ghosts (well, as much as you can kill something that is already dead) but not because he is evil or the ghosts are evil… they just need to go on to that next place. They are not supposed to be in this world anymore, they are causing havoc and Cas is helping them along.

Secondly, the book is written in the first person and I have to say that this is one of the strongest, most consistent voices that I’ve ever seen in a main character. A couple of my favorite examples:

I don’t like this kid. He’s presumptuous. And yet, he’s earnest and well-meaning, which softens me a little. If he’s listenting to what I’m thinking, I’m going to slash his tires. (pg. 52)

I walk through the door and close it behind. I don’t want to give the ghost the opportunity for a cheap B-movie scare by slamming it shut. (pg. 97)

What is it about the sight of your mother that makes everything fireside-warm and full of dancing Muppets? (pg. 220)

Thirdly, the author uses pop culture references several times throughout the book and I think she does it in a way that enhances the story because it seems natural in the voice of the main character. I’ve seen others do this and sometimes it seems like they are really taking the easy way out by using a pop culture reference rather than describing something in the narrator’s voice. But, in Cas’ voice, it seems right. I really found this interesting because I’ve caught myself doing it in my own writing and always struggle with whether I should do it or not. Again, a couple of my favorite examples:

I sigh. “So now what? Can I possibly tell you to go home and forget about this? Is there any way that I can avoid us forming some peppy group of–” Before my mouth can finish, I lean forward and groan into my hands. Carmel gets it first, and laughs.

“A peppy group of ghostbusters?” she asks.

“I get to be Peter Venkman,” says Thomas.

(pg. 149)

“You’ve been completely unable to subdue her?” he asks finally.

“Completely. She’s Bruce Lee, the Hulk, and Neo from The Matrix all rolled into one.”

(pg. 162)

A final note. This book likely falls into the genres of YA, paranormal, and horror… definitely horror. I don’t generally read horror. Yes, I’m a wuss. I’ll own up to it! This book had me creeped out in several places and yet I could NOT put it down. That just speaks to the strength of the writing and how fantastic the story line is. Now the only problem I have is that the sequel – GIRL OF NIGHTMARES – isn’t out until August!

Read and unread: a review and preview

If you are a fan of The Bloggess (aka: Jenny Lawson), have you bought her new book ”Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir”? What are you waiting for? Okay, you maybe already have bought it considering that it debuted at number 1 on the New York Times Best Seller List for Combined Print and E-Book Nonfiction last week.

If you are not a fan of The Bloggess, then you might want to skip it. She is very swear-y.

Personally? I adore her. This is not the kind of book I would normally pick up. I like to get lost in a completely different place when a read a book - like a trip to Narnia or Hogwarts or even District 12 inside of Panem. “Real life” kind of books are not my thing. This book had me laughing (and then crying) and transported in a whole different kind of way.

I think her comments in the dedication sum up the entire book and the importance of it perfectly:

This book is a love letter to my family. It’s about the suprising discovery that the most terribly human moments – the ones we want to pretend never happened – are the very same moments that make us who we are today. I’ve reserved the very best stories of my life for this book … to celebrate the strange, and to give thanks for the bizarre. Because you are defined not by life’s imperfect moments, but by your reaction to them. And because there is joy in embracing – rather than running screaming from – the utter absurdity of life. I thank my family for teaching me that lesson. In spades.

- Jenny Lawson

Some of my other favorite bits of the book:

The entire chapter “Stanley, the Magical Talking Squirrel” had me laughing so hard I had to put the book away because I couldn’t see through the tears.

The bit where she wants her husband to pee all around the house to ward off the “foxen.” But since he refuses to do it she calls to see if her father can come and do it. But since her father is busy, her mother offers to save some of his urine and have it mailed to her but she declines “because that’s a package I never want to sign for.”

Pretty much all the conversations she has with her husband. I would love to meet that guy. He must be very laid back.

So, that’s the book I just wrapped up. Next up: State of Wonder by Ann Patchett (this is a book club selection). I am most excited, though, about my pre-order of Insurgent by Veronica Roth due to arrive on May 1 and my pre-order of City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare due to arrive on May 8.

What are you currently reading? What’s next up on your list?

Just for Fun

The folks over at How it Should Have Ended have come up with this gem! Hunger Games: How it Should Have Ended. It’s hilarious!

Beth Revis: dastardly or brilliant? Or both?

I recently finished Across the Universe and A Million Suns by Beth Revis and was a little sad. You know that feeling you get when you finish a really good book and then you miss the characters? Yep. That’s what Beth Revis did to me.

Here’s the Across the Universe description from Goodreads: Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.
Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone – one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship – tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn’t do something soon, her parents will be next.
Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed’s hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there’s only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

I knew right off the bat these were going to be great books because Revis’ description of Amy being frozen and then the painstaking years of her unconsciousness was brilliant. It made me ache for her. I couldn’t put the book down until Amy became un-frozen because… well, I just couldn’t leave her like that! That is how completely this book sucked me into its world.

The whole of both the books are like that, though. I had to keep turning page after page. I’d get to the end of a chapter, ready to put it down and then she’d end it with something like this: “I turn toward the ceiling, toward the exposed universe. Toward death.” I dare you to not turn the page and start on the next chapter after a line like that!

I not only loved the premise of the series but the characters are also fascinating and not predictable. Amy is not a weakling girl out of time who needs to be taken care of by the strong leader. Elder is not a cocky, overbearing leader who thinks he knows everything. And most of all, Beth Revis is not afraid to go “there.” To dark, uncomfortable places. But places that make perfect sense for the plot to go – not for gratuitous reasons.

The best part was the major twist in the second book. ‘Nough said. No spoilers here.

So, brilliant? Yes. Here’s where the dastardly part comes in: book three (Shades of Earth) is not due out until January 2013. I am reminded of my unwritten rule to never start a series until all the books are already out so I don’t have to wait for anything because I have the patience of a five-year-old. Unfortunately, I keep breaking that rule so I’ll just have to anxiously anticipate the wait for this book along with all the other Revis fans!

Friday Fives: Author Envy

Hey! This looks like fun! Over at Paper Hangover today they are asking: what five novels do you wish you had written? Which - I think - is another way of asking what five of your favorite novels are. Which is tough to narrow down, of course. But here goes!

1) A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. Or anything by her, really. This story was so inventive and really made you think. It seemed like all her books had a philosophical angle to them that really made you step back and realize that right and wrong were not black and white. Good and evil, etc. etc. I would love to write a book that not only entertains but makes you think.

2) The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. Seriously, is there any book anywhere ever that is more creative and clever than this book? From the very underlying premise to every single character Milo meets on his journey, the whole thing is amazing, funny, touching, and teaches you something at each turn. Again – not only entertaining but enlightening.

3) The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. Need I explain?

4) Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. Not only because I thought I’d better pick at least one contemporary novel here, but also because her use of language makes me extremely envious. I wish I could write like that!

5) The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I really have an unhealthy addiction to dystopian books and this has got to be one of the best. The premise is great. The characters are likeable, conflicted and strong.

So, that’s my Friday Five. What are your five? Play along!

A couple of book reviews, but no RTW for me :(

I was all psyched to do Road Trip Wednesday (RTW) through YA Highway yesterday but then life got in the way. The “challenge” on RTW this week was to write a scene between two YA characters. The scene that immediately popped into my mind (that I did not have time to write) was between Sean from Scorpio Races and Sansa from Game of Thrones. Which is kind of cheating because Game of Thrones isn’t really YA. But it’s the book I was finishing up this week so it was on my mind. The scene would be something along the lines of Sansa being completely unrealistic about absolutely everything around her (like swooning about how pretty the water horses are and how she’d like to catch one and call it Fluffy or something ridiculous) and Sean telling her what an idiot she is. Well, Sean probably wouldn’t actually tell her since he is a man of few words. But he’d be thinking it.

I have not participated in RTW before, but I’m a big fan! There’s always next week.

Finishing up Game of Thrones was part of what got in the way of me doing RTW this week because it was an e-loan from the library and about to expire so I HAD to finish and finish quick. I have been meaning to start on this epic series by George RR Martin for ages because every time I turn around, someone is saying how great it is. But… they don’t call it epic for nothin’. The books are huge. There are several of them (and a couple more to come, I think). It just seemed like a MAJOR commitment. Especially when there so many other great books out there that I’ve wanted to read and could finish much more quickly.

I finally took the plunge. And am so glad I did. Martin is a master. The thing that boggles my mind about writing something like this is how you keep so many moving parts straight. There are soooo many characters – major and minor. And then there are all the locations (completely fabricated, which also requires a talent for keeping things straight) and all the relationships to keep straight. He does it brilliantly. I was THERE – living in these fabricated castles and keeps with these characters who are brave, cowardly (or craven, as he calls them), brilliant, stupid, honest and deceptive.

So, in short – what I loved about this book were the multiple, intricate story lines told so brilliantly.

What I did not so much care for in this book was some of the more gory stuff that seemed to me to be a little gratuitous. I also wanted to kill Sansa. She has got to be the stupidest character ever. I’m guessing that in the sequels, she wises up and becomes more realistic about the world around her. But she’s Just. So. Dumb. And the thing that really bothered me is that, I didn’t think it was that believable that her character would be that dumb because it obviously isn’t how she has been raised. She isn’t a thing like either of her parents or any of her brothers and sisters. There seems to be no basis for how she became such a moronic dreamer.

Wow. This post got long. So now I have no room to tell you about the other book I finished recently – Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater. So, I’ll sum it up in a few words: LOVE. Fantastic book. Highly recommend. It made me want to move to a small island, start mucking out horse stalls and try to tame a horse that could potentially kill me.

What are you reading this week?

Book review: Clockwork Prince

This week I finally finished “Clockwork Prince” by Cassandra Clare. Whew! It seems like it took me forever to finish reading this but not because I didn’t like it! (I blame the holidays.) In fact, I think this may be my favorite Cassandra Clare book so far.

Here is just part of the description from Goodreads:

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.

There were some great twists and turns that I did not see coming. I loved watching the anguished feelings that Tessa has for Will – and who can figure that guy out? In this book, we finally get to see why he acts the way he does. He’s moody for a reason, folks! And I apologize to Jessamine for throwing her character away as simply eye-candy during the recent Class of 2011: YA Superlatives Blog Fest. Her character becomes fully fleshed out in this book and she plays a major role.

As I said, I think this is my favorite Cassandra Clare book so far and apparently, I’m not alone. In quickly perusing some of the reviews on Goodreads, it sounds like there are many who prefer The Infernal Devices series over The Mortal Instruments series. The plot lines were clearly laid out, the characters were almost tangible and, as I said, there are some great twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. No spoilers here, though!

I’m hoping to finish up “Crossed” by Ally Condie in the next few days and I’m loving it so far. I have read other reviews that say they were disappointed in the ending of “Crossed” so I’m preparing myself for however it ends. But, keeping things in perspective, this is the second book in a trilogy. I mean, who was happy at the end of “The Empire Strikes Back” when Han Solo is carted away encased in carbonite?

In other news, I found this great new website Stereo Mood (which I stumbled across on a new blog that I found: Peggy Eddleman, who I promptly subscribed to because she obviously has wisdom that I know not!). On this site, you can pick whatever kind of mood you’re in and it will pull up a playlist for you. Brilliant for when you just need some kind of background music. Reminds me a little of Pandora, only more generic.

TGIF y’all!