I did a lot of reading this month, so I have lots to review this month for our Reading Lately linkup. I read a lot of books to finish Erin’s Book Challenge that ends this month. But I also read some books for some other groups I’m participating in.
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
This is the second book in the Lunar series by Marissa Meyer. Scarlet follows Cinder after her escape from prison. It’s supposed to resemble Little Red Riding Hood, but it does so very loosely in its futuristic, sci-fi way. Cinder and Thorne, a fellow inmate, have escaped the royal prison in New Beijing together. She is looking for clues to discover her past and he is happy to have escaped jail. The only thing she knows is that she is Princess Selene, the niece of the evil Lunar Queen, Levana. The book also follows Scarlet Benoit, who is searching for her missing grandmother. Scarlet encounters a street fighter who has information on her grandmother, and the two set off to find her.
This second book in the series picks up right where the first leaves off. And it ends very suddenly. It kind of makes sense if each part of Cinder’s journey is based off a different classic fairytale. Except I feel it ends kind of in the middle of the story. It seems more to leave off how a movie would leave you with a cliff hanger. But it could have naturally kept going. Again this book is written well, with relatable themes and ideas. The conversation is realistic, I like that it’s very natural. I really enjoy reading this series, despite my initial hesitation. I definitely plan to finish this series but I probably won’t review any more of them here. Can’t give away the whole series!
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
Rachel Watson rides the 8:04 train every morning, where she sees what she believes to be a perfect couple outside on their patio every day. One morning, she sees something that shocks her. And when Megan goes missing a few days later, Rachel tells the police what she saw. But when the police don’t take her seriously, Rachel takes matters into her own hands to solve the mystery.
There was so much hype about this book, and I sort of see why. It’s an interesting idea, it’s a realistic thriller and it’s well written. But in my opinion, it was good book… but it wasn’t great. I read it to the end and I never felt forced to finish it, but it wasn’t something I couldn’t put down or that I needed to stay up and finish. I suspected the “major twist”. The characters are all annoying, but their issues are all too relevant and relatable. From manipulative men to cheating to heartbreak to alcoholism, it’s all in there. And the ending just fell a little flat. The whole book is about figuring out who the murderer is, and the revelation of the murderer and what happen afterwards are just dull and unrealistic. I liked the book, but I don’t think it lived up to the hype.
The Fellowship of the Ring: Being the First Part of the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien
I’ve never read any of the Lord of the Rings books or even seen the movies. I had to read The Hobbit in middle school and I hated it (I hated doing homework). Anyways, I’m not sure I really need to describe the plot in this book, since most people have already seen the movies. Frodo Baggins inherits a ring from his cousin, Bilbo Baggins. Gandalf learns what the ring really is, and tells Frodo its history and present danger. Frodo then sets off on a journey to destroy the ring.
So my impressions of the book. I really like the storyline, it’s interesting and adventurous. It’s pretty cool to imagine a world with elves, hobbits, and wizards. I found that sometimes the book was too descriptive, going into too much detail on the surroundings and scenery. It dragged on a times, but it added to the story by bringing you into the moment and creating a visualization in your mind. I tried my hardest not to skip over the exaggerated song lyrics and poems as they were pretty boring. The history of the dwarves, elves, hobbits, etc. was often quite complex and confusing. But I must admit, I am impressed with all the thought that went into this, to come up with that much detail and background.
I also want to note that I am reading the second book in the series and am finding it’s taking me longer to read, I just don’t have the same motivation to pick up the book and read it.
This month I joined The Blended Blog’s virtual book club to challenge myself to read more. I also like participating in review discussions, it helps me to think about the book more and understand things I might have missed or didn’t think about. See what books we’re reading (or supposed to read) for May here!
Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult
I’ve already read this book, as a review for NetGalley. Read the review here.
Don’t forget to link up with us! It doesn’t need to be a current post, any book review post will work 🙂
I can’t believe you have never read or seen LOTR! I have girl on the Train on my bookshelf and need tor dad it one of these days just to see what the hype is about.