Saturday Discussions (8): Do you write negative reviews?

Before I ever started my blog, I knew that I wanted to be honest on here. I set out to review movies and books with honesty and to turn a sharp critical eye to the things that I love. That also means finding a fair amount of things that I don't love in the process. See, the wonderful and sometimes terrible thing about writing is that it's purely subjective. For a million people that like something, there are going to be at least a few who don't.

But the question was, do I state this here on my blog for EVERYONE to read?

The only answer I could come up with was an honest one and that is absolutely. 

I never want a friend to hate something and tell me they liked it just to be nice. So why would I do the same thing to my followers? Because that's what we all are, right? We're friends who have a common passion. So I feel I owe it to you all to tell you if I'm not crazy about something.

The problem with negative reviews?

They can really hurt the author and other people who might be wild about these books. The internet makes everything that much smaller. My opinion can be read by so many people. Which is why I try to analysis why I don't like something and EMPHASIZE that it could sincerely just be my tastes. I'm never going to say that the "characters sucked" because it's rude, unprofessional, and as a writer, I know it's also hurtful. I might say something like "While Amber was funny, it was hard for me to have pity for her because she was selfish. Her selfishness caused me not to connect with her and thus it was hard for me to truly care what happened to her". That is telling you why I disliked something without being rude.

I think that the problem with negative reviews is when people don't handle them professionally. Nothing bothers me more than people ranting about how this novel was crap and the writer was terrible for having written it and that anyone who likes it must be stupid. Yeah, that is SO not the way to write a negative review.

I feel like negative reviews can be useful and need to be out there but there is a major difference between doing it to be helpful and doing it to be hurtful.

My last thing is that I've read a lot of posts where people say that most bloggers won't write negative reviews on ARCs they receive. Is this true? Maybe. Is this true for me? No, not at all. I'm never going to lie to you. I give five bunnies only if something blows my mind. I only give 1 bunny if I can't finish or barely finish it. I can understand why people would feel bad about giving a newly released book a bad review that the publisher let them have early but that's part of the risk they take. It has no factor in my enjoyment of a novel.

So as a final thought, I'd like to explain my rating system:

5 bunnies- This is reserved for mind-blowingly good books only. Things that will change the way you look at reading. Things that keep me up at night.

4 bunnies- I loved this book a lot. I read it fast and furiously but I can think of a few things that would have bettered my enjoyment.

3 bunnies- This is my most common rating. It for books that were fun reads but did have some flaws. Generally they are gambles. You might love it or you might not.

2 bunnies- Though I finished the book, there were loads of flaws and you should read at your own risk. I either had a serious problem with the writing, the plot or the characters (most of the time, all three).

1 bunny- I just couldn't finish it or it was a struggle to get through. Plenty of problems.

Got something to say on this subject but want to write your own posts? Well, I think that's awesome! Please let me know if you do a follow up post on this topic by adding your name to the list below and also, just mention this post in yours with a link back to me:

Have a question or topic you'd like to see my tackle? Feel free to suggest some:

Next week's question: Do you judge a book by it's cover?

YA's Most Eligible Round 1 Results

Hey everyone. First order of business. I could really use a nifty button for this event. If you'd like to help me out, I'd really appreciate it. Please e-mail!

So next up, this is the results of the guy's from series with two or more guys in the series. There are so many wonderful series that I wanted to narrow it down a bit to give more guys from other novels a shot. The next voting round will be all these guys plus the ones with no competition yet (like Jay from The Body Finder). I just thought you all would be interested in seeing for yourselves the results of this round. Thanks to everyone who voted and look out for the next voting round where the final 20 heartthrobs will be chosen!

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins-

Peeta

The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare-

Jace

The Vampire Academy by Rachel Mead-

Dimitri

The Iron Fey series by Julia Kagawa-

Ash

The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare-

Will

Matched by Ally Condie-

Ky

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer-

Ren

The Wolves of Mercy Falls by Maggie Stiefvater-

Sam

The Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyers-

Edward

Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr-

Seth

Wondrous Strange series by Lesley Livingston-

Sonny

The Demon Trapper series by Jana Oliver-

Beck

The Vampire Diaries by L.J. Smith-

Damon

Need series by Carrie Jones-

Nick

The Morganville Vampire series by Rachel Caine-

Shane

Fallen series by Lauren Kate-

Daniel

Wings series by Aprilynne Pike-

Tamani

The Uglies by Scott Westerfield-

Zane

Wither by Lauren DeStefano-

Gabriel

Strange Angels series by Lilith Saintcrow-

Graves

13 to Life series by Shannon Delany-

Max

Firelight series by Sophie Jordan-

Will

The Summer I Turned Pretty series by Jenny Han-

Jeremiah

The Demon's Lexicon series by Sarah Rees Brennan-

Nick

Personal Demons series by Lisa Derocheres- 

Luc

The Mediator series by Meg Cabot-

Jesse

Alright, so those are the results of the love triangle guys. This is your last chance to nominate the guys you love in the comments. I already have the other ones you've requested piled up. After that, I'm going to be compiling a master list and then the voting will commence for the Top Twenty! So show your favorite guys some love!

Waiting on Wednesday (40): Darker Still, A Long, Long Sleep and Legend

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where you can post about upcoming books you're looking forward to.

This is a wonderful chance for blogger to show off what's coming out soon that they are excited about! Every week my wishlist balloons thanks to this awesome meme.

Darker Still by Leanna Renee Hieber

The shadows deepen on the gaslit streets of New York City in the year 1880. Curses and spirits, demons and rituals, blood and faith, love and danger; such is the stuff of Magic Most Foul. Find your voice... or else.

Why I need this: I'm not going to lie to you. I need this mostly because of that incredible cover. I mean, seriously? Beautiful! But I also want to know more about it the little bit of description we get sounds good.

Darker Still comes out November 8, 2011 from Sourcebooks Fire. 

A Long Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan

Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for 62 years when she is woken by a kiss. Locked away in the chemically-induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten sub-basement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now, her parents and her first love are long dead, and Rose - hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire - is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat. Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes - or be left without any future at all.

Why I need this: Hello you wonderful little fairytale re-telling you! I've been looking for one like you forever and ever! Who doesn't love Sleeping Beauty, especially one where now she has to save herself? Love, love, love this!


A Long Long Sleep comes out August 9, 2011 to Candlewick.

Legend by Marie Lu

The United States is gone, along with its flooded coasts. North America's two warring nations, the western Republic and the eastern Colonies, have reached a breaking point. In the midst of this broken continent and dark new world are two teenagers who will go down in history.... 

Born into the slums of Los Angeles, fifteen-year old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. A mysterious boy with no recorded image or fingerprints. A boy who should no longer exist. A boy who watches over his family until one evening, when the plague patrols mark his family's door with an X--the sign of plague infection. A death sentence for any family too poor to afford the antidote. Desperate, Day has no choice; he must steal it. 

Born to an elite family in Los Angeles' wealthy Ruby sector, fifteen-year old June is the Republic's most promising prodigy. A superintelligent girl destined for great things in the country's highest military circles. Obedient, passionate, and committed to her country--until the day her brother Metias is murdered while on patrol during a break-in at the plague hospital. 

Only one person could be responsible. 

Day. 

And now it's June's mission to hunt him down. 

The truth they'll uncover will become legend.

Why I need this: Yeah so with the wonderfulness of The Hunger Games and Divergent, I'm looking for something to fill the void and Legend seems to fit the bill. I love that she's the assassin! I can't wait for this one!


Legend comes out November 29, 2011 to Putnam Juvenile.


So tell me, what are you waiting for?

TEAser Tuesday (38): Sleepless by Cyn Balog

TEAser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• Be careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others!

Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles!

Sleepless by Cyn Balog

"Instinctively, I reach into my pant pockets. where I always kept my money before, all the while knowing what I'll find there. Nothing. I haven't had any money in a hundred years."

-- Pg. 74 of "Sleepless" by Cyn Balog

I'm almost finished with this novel and it is really enjoyable. It's exactly the simple kind of read I was looking for while managing to give me fleshed out and enjoyable characters in a bite size package!

What's your teaser?

Spring Blog Carinval Winner!

I had over 400 entries to this giveaway so I'm really sorry it took me so long to announce this. Without further ado the winner is...

J.L Cambell of The Reader's Suite

who wanted...

Congrats to the winner and thanks to everyone who entered! Didn't win? Check out my 1,000 Follower Giveaway!

Happily Ever Endings... Everlost by Neal Shusterman

Happily Ever Endings... was born out of sheer frustration. You know how when you read a series and you love it but the last book takes a little while to come out and then you sort of forget parts of the novel? That's what these posts are going to serve to remedy. Happily Ever Ending... is a short post about what happened at the ending of each book that is going to be in a series for people who need a quick reminder of what happened in the previous installment. I hope this saves someone else the frustration that I went through!

Everlost (Skinjackers #1) by Neal Shusterman

Nick and Allie don't survive the car accident...but their souls don't exactly get where they're supposed to get either. Instead, they're caught halfway between life and death, in a sort of limbo known as Everlost: a shadow of the living world, filled with all the things and places that no longer exist. It's a magical yet dangerous place where bands of lost children run wild and anyone who stands in the same place too long sinks to the center of the Earth. 

When they find Mary, the self-proclaimed queen of lost kids, Nick feels like he's found a home. But Allie isn't satisfied spending eternity between worlds. Against all warnings, Allie begins learning the "Criminal Art" of haunting and ventures into dangerous territory, where a monster called the McGill threatens all the souls of Everlost. 

In this imaginative novel, Neal Shusterman explores questions of life, death, and what just might lie in between.

Click "Read more" to see the ending of Everlost (Skinjackers #1) so that you are ready for Everwild.

Book Review: Everlost (Skinjackers #1) by Neal Shusterman

Everlost (Skinjackers #1) by Neal Shusterman


Reading Level: Young Adult
Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416997490
ISBN-13: 978-1416997498
Source: Finished copy provided by the publisher
Cover: I actually really like this cover. It's haunting with the silhouettes of the girl and boy and looks a lot like the forest in the beginning. Plus, the green of the background and the bold red lettering look great!
First Sentence: "On a hairpin turn, above a dead forest, on no day in particular, a white Toyota crashed into a black Mercedes, for a moment blending into a blur of grey."


Mini-Review: Wildly imaginative, unique and loads of fun, Everlost is one read you won't mind getting lost in!


Book Summary: 

Nick and Allie don't survive the car accident...but their souls don't exactly get where they're supposed to get either. Instead, they're caught halfway between life and death, in a sort of limbo known as Everlost: a shadow of the living world, filled with all the things and places that no longer exist. It's a magical yet dangerous place where bands of lost children run wild and anyone who stands in the same place too long sinks to the center of the Earth. 

When they find Mary, the self-proclaimed queen of lost kids, Nick feels like he's found a home. But Allie isn't satisfied spending eternity between worlds. Against all warnings, Allie begins learning the "Criminal Art" of haunting and ventures into dangerous territory, where a monster called the McGill threatens all the souls of Everlost. 

In this imaginative novel, Neal Shusterman explores questions of life, death, and what just might lie in between.

Book Review: 


From the first line to the last, Everlost is one of those novels that is unlike anything else out there. It's full of imagination, bigger than life characters, a rich and well developped world and boosts a snarky narrator voice. This type of read felt a bit more middle grade to me and thus wasn't my usual read but it was delightful and something I'm really happy I picked it up to read.


Everlost is one of those worlds that will stick in your head. It reminded me of an upside down Neverland. After Allie and Nick die in a car crash and don't "get where they are going" they wind up in Everlost as "Afterlights" or ghosts. They sink in places not in Everlost (aka places people haven't died or places that haven't been lost to the world), they glow, fortune cookies tell you the real furture and there are monsters and legends taller than the Tall Tales Americans are so fond of. Full of fun stories of ships sinking into the ocean from a belch in the sea and hideous monsters that can't harm those it huants so must "chime them" (hang them upside down and go to swing them around and bore them), it is this rich imaginative world that immediately captures the reader. This is only enhanced by little snippets of some of the character's own books with rules and guidelines.


The characters of this novel are no less big than the place they inhabit. Each has their own legend and the way people talk about them is all heresay. We see it first hand in the plot. The McGill is a hideous monster but the more time we spend with him, the more we find out about his motivations and who he might be underneath. Mary Hightower is a benevolent caretaker to her charges or The Sky Witch or Mary Queen of Snots to others of Everlost who have heard of her. It's all about who you talk to. Allie and Nick were both fun leads and I liked that they didn't always stay together but their paths did cross and effect each other.


The narrator's voice in this novel is just perfect. In an all knowing third person, it feels like some off kelter fairytale. Sometimes snarky, sometimes funny and always a step ahead, it was perfect for the story told. I did feel that the story dragged on a bit and some of the descriptions where just a bit over board. Also, this type of story felt young to me and that's not my thing. However, it was a pleasure to read.


I'm not giving this one a higher rating because I feel it's geared towards younger audiences and wasn't really my thing. But if you love middle grade, this is the book to pick up. Would I read the sequel? Yes! Did I rush to get through this one? No. If this was my type of novel, it would get a five. It's so inventive and fresh! So if you like what you've read, please pick this one up! You won't be disappointed.

Rating: