Marked (House of Night #1) by P.C. Cast

"It's a whole bottle of After School Special mixed with Vampire Finishing School. The Cast, Mother/Daughter writing team managed to create an interesting concept. Unfortunately, the shallow characters and painfully contrived storyline made for a truly cringe-worthy read."

1 Star

Pros: Casts take on Vampirism is definitely unique, I'll give them that. Equating "the change" of becoming an adult Vampire to basically, puberty or menopause, well, it was definitely one way to rationalize it.

Cons: Teenage colloquialisms of "OMG, like, no way", "OMG, he's so hot and he so likes you" ad nauseum.

Full Review:

Zoey is your regular, unhappy, moody teenager, dissatisfied with her home and personal life. That all seems trivial though when one morning someone shows up at her locker at school, while her friend is babbling inanely, oblivious. The man looks at Zoey, mutters some canned, cryptic, ritualistic words and bam, Zoey is now a fledgling Vampire. Now she has to uproot her entire teenage life and move to the House of Night, which is essentially Vampire finishing school.

The concept was definitely unique. But Casts writing was melodramatic, overdone, sappy and frankly, childish. There was a strange imbalance with the Zoey character too. At times, seemingly well versed in very adult situations, she would then go onto use words such as poopie and boobies, more than once. The ending couldn't have been more overdone or predictable and honestly, I was glad to be done with it. I don't plan on continuing this series.

Comments

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick

“Rick Deckard is a Bounty Hunter who's on the trail of six "Andys" (Androids) who have come to Earth illegally. His job is to track them down and "retire" them. Something he found easy to do until he met her, Rachael Rosen. The Android that does the impossible, passes the "Voight-Kampff" test. The story quickly devolves into a slow, drawn out and frankly boring mystery that was putting me to sleep by the end." ⭐⭐ Pros: I was more interested in comparing it to the film, "Bladerunner."/At first I kind of liked the drab, dreary atmostphere but it soon became soporific. Cons: I had no real idea what was going on with Mercerism/The end there had me blinking in bewilderment, like with Herbert's 29th Dune Book/There was a lot of idle chit-chat while they were in murderous/intense situations, it just seemed odd. Full Review: Rick Deckard, a Bounty Hunter, contracted with the San Francisco Police Department hunts down and retires rogue ...

The Glutton by A. K. Blakemore

"Though dark, disturbing and at times, truly disgusting, Blakemore has created an unforgettable character in Tarare and his sad, sordid tale. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time for many different reasons and to me, that's a sign of a great read." ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐ Pros: Tarare wasn't a monster, it just seemed that the world was against him/I liked Lozeau and his strange band of misfits/Dr. Dupuis seemed like a genuinely good person, or at least, he had his moments. Cons: Some of the timeline/people of the French Revolution were just white noise to me/Courville was a despicable man. Full Review: The Bottomless man, the Glutton of Lyon, Tarare the Terrible. The man who has many titles but who's name is simply, Tarare, is dying in a hospital in Versailles. Citizen Doctor Tissier has written to his friend, Dupuis, in hopes that he'll be able to cure this mysterious illness that plagues Tarare. For now though, he lays, chained to his bed and waits for...

Animal Farm by George Orwell

"A blithe and scathing commentary on equality, power, corruption and how everyone is created equal, but...some are more equal than others. Orwell hit the nail right on the head with this novel and it's no wonder it's a staple for most high school curriculums. " 3 Stars. Pros: Benjamin the Donkey is the smartest animal on the farm and it would have done all the others a world of good if they had listened to him in the first place. Cons: The fact that societies like this actually do exist is nauseating and terrible. It's not a con, per se, it's just a gut wrenching fact. Full Review: When the overworked and mistreated Animals on Manor Farm decide to rise up and overthrow their cruel master, they're successful. They rebel and now find themselves with an entire Farm to run. They rename it Animal Farm and are intent on creating a paradise, where work and play are equal, where productivity is key but relaxation is a must and all the lives of all the animal...

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