Book Review: Cinder

Cinder  by Marissa Meyer

In this futuristic, Sci-Fi retelling of the classic Cinderella story, Cinder is a mechanic working for her step-mother in New Beijing. She also happens to be a cyborg. As a deadly plague spreads across the world, she must help Prince Kai (this story's Prince Charming) protect the Earth's future from the Lunar Queen, while trying to figure out her mysterious past.

I'm not always the biggest fan of futuristic, Sci-Fi stuff, but I really loved this book.  It's descriptive, and exciting, and I can't wait to start the next one, which is waiting on my nightstand right now!

I give it an A-.

The next two books in the Lunar Chronicles series are Scarlett (#2) and Cress (#3). They are available now.

Book Review: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

 

 

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Arthur Dent is a guy just trying to get by in life. Then aliens show up and blow up the earth.  Arthur narrowly escapes by hitching a ride on an alien spaceship with the help of his friend, Ford Perfect, an alien who has been posing for the past fifteen years on earth as an out-of-work actor, but is in fact a researcher for the manual, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

This is one of those books that I didn't love, but I didn't completely hate it either, which surprises me, since I'm usually super into really geeky stuff like this. I really enjoyed the dry, British humor and the off-the-wall scenarios, but the story itself seemed to stay at the same, slow pace throughout the entire book. It just didn't hold my attention very well.

I give it a C+.

If you liked this one, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe is the next book in this series. Though honestly, I'm really not in any hurry to read it...

On the plus side, the movie version has Martin Freeman (AKA John Watson in Sherlock and Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit franchise) in it. Might be worth watching just for him!

Book Review: Under the Dome

Under the Dome by Stephen King

The people in the town of Chester's Mill, Maine suddenly find themselves trapped under an invisible dome, unable to get out, and not knowing if it will ever go away.

There's no doubt Stephen King is a fantastic storyteller, and this book is no exception. Unlike his usual horror books, this is really the story of how the people of a small town interact with each other when their ways of life are threatened. This was a pretty good read, even though getting through over a thousand pages (my Nook version was actually a little over 1300 pages!!) took a while, the "bad guys" really had no redeeming qualities at all, and the end was a little lacking, and somewhat predictable.

I give this one a B-.

If you're a fan if Stephen King's less scary works, I also recommend 11/22/63. Also, I have not seen the show, but I have it on good authority that the book is completely different. What are your thoughts?

Book Review: Paranormalcy, Supernaturally, Endlessly (A Trilogy)

Book One

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

Evie is a very normal teenage girl. She just happens to be able to see through paranormals (Faeries, vampires, werewolves, etc.) "glamours" to the real monsters underneath, and she works for an agency that tracks these paranormals.

Book Two
 

 Okay, so these books are definitely geared toward the 16-year-old crowd. But I loved them. So much so, that I ran right out to the library for the second (and third) book in the series as soon as I finished the first. I like that Evie isn't the typical brooding teen girl (she's sort of an anti-Bella Swan, if you will.) She likes pink. She likes boys. She likes shopping. And she kicks butt.




Book Three

I give this whole series (Paranormalcy, Supernaturally, and Endlessly) a B+.

If you liked this book/series, check out Mind Games, also by Kiersten White,  who happens to be a San Diego County native.

Book Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

 

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

After witnessing the gruesome death of his grandfather, 16 year old Jacob seems to be having a mental breakdown. His father takes him to the remote island his grandfather was from to help him cope, and while there Jacob discovers that his grandfather's seemingly tall tales of monsters and orphans with special gifts might actually be true.

Although the storytelling is a little slow at times, once you get into this book it's fantastic. I loved the X-Men quality to some of the characters, and I'm a sucker for time travel and mysteries, so this was just my cup of tea. And all the creepy photographs  throughout the book (which Ransom Riggs based the whole story around) are fascinating!

I give this one a B.

If you enjoy this book, Riggs just released the sequel called Hollow City. And if you liked the photography, he has another book full of the pictures he's collected called "Talking Pictures".

 

Book Review: Outlander

 

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

In 1945 Scotland, Claire Randall is a nurse, home from the war, and on a sort of second honeymoon with her husband. But while visiting an old stone circle, she is transported back in time to 1743, where she meets Jamie Fraser, a young Scottish warrior, and soon becomes torn between two very different centuries, and two very different men.

Outlander is one of my all time favorite series of books. It is very much historical fiction, but I love the slight Sci-Fi edge, since I'm such a sucker for time travel. But really, it's so well written, I forget about it being even slightly in the Sci-Fi realm. Just a warning though, there are some pretty graphic scenes, of both violent and sexual natures.

I give this book an A.

The next book in the eight book Outlander series is  Dragonfly in Amber.

Come to the Geek Side! We Have Cookies!

Growing up, my nickname from my best friends' older sisters was Geek Megan. It was never my favorite, mostly because growing up in the 90's, being a geek was never a good thing.

 

Now that I'm a grown up, or, you know, trying to be, I have embraced the geek way of life. Being geeky isn't a bad thing. Everyone has something they're a geek about, whether it's shopping, make-up, reality TV, or the "classic" geek things like sci-fi and fantasy and comic books. My geekiness happens to come in the forms of books, TV, and movies... and the occasional celebri-stalking on Twitter.

I love all things Disney.

I love all things Steampunk.

I love British television.

I LOVE movies.

I LOVE to read.

I'm slightly obsessed with the Oscars. I find David Tennant more than slightly attractive. I kind of want to be friends with Joss Whedon.

And don't even get me started on Harry Potter.

I'm proud to be a geek mom. I hope my kidlets can learn to embrace the things they love that they are geeky about. With parents like my husband and I (He's also a fellow geek. Probably more so than me... the guy runs D&D games for cryin' out loud!) it's bound to happen.

And it shall be glorious!