Most Disappointing Books of 2019

I may or may not have been very much looking forward to writing this post. As much as I love to rave about the books I love, my family can testify to how much I like to complain/rant about the books I've hated.
What can I say? I have strong opinions.
That being said, I have nine books that made this list, books that looked interesting or that I was excited to read, that turned out not to live up to my expectations in the least. Alright. Here we go.
Disclaimer: If I mention a book that you love, please don't take it personally. I'm not attacking you. One great thing about reading is that everyone has different opinions! I'm also not trying to mean when I say a book bored me or was awful or anything. The worst I'm trying to be is funny. Which granted, I'm not very good at. XP 
But if you want to talk to me about something I said in this wrap-up, please leave a (polite) comment below. I'm more than happy to discuss! :)

Photo by Jonas Jacobsson on Unsplash

8. Mitosis by Brandon Sanderson

So... I don't really have very strong opinions about this one. I just didn't see the point of it? And it just didn't live up to any of my expectations. You all know that I love Brandon Sanderson's books. But Mitosis just didn't do it for me. 

It didn't really add anything to my understanding to the Reckoners universe or the storyline, and honestly, the way it was written made it way less dark than the main trilogy and more laughable than anything else.  

But this book makes the list because it was written by Brandon Sanderson, and I expected more from him than this.

7. The Maze Runner by James Dashner

I watched the movie first. It wasn't amazing. But I heard that the book was so much better than the movie, and decided to give it a go. After all, The Maze Runner has an intriguing premise. 

Let me tell you guys. It wasn't good. It really wasn't. I don't know where the hype for this book came from. It has a decent plot (excepting the last chapters, which had so many leaps of logic and plot holes that it was cringe worthy) but that's about it. The characterization? Nonexistent. The writing? Juvenile, at best. 

I do know that this book is hugely popular, and I'm really sorry I didn't like it. If you did: good for you! I'm not trying to put down anyone who genuinely enjoyed this book. It just didn't do it for me. 

6. Splintered by A.G. Howard

This book looked super interesting! A dark, Tim Burton-esque retelling of Alice in Wonderland sounded right up my alley. But it didn't really live up to that description at all. The first portion of the book, set in the main character's hometown, did seem to be setting up a creepy, interesting middle. But once Alyssa stepped into Wonderland, everything went downhill -- the characterization, the plot, the worldbuilding, and most of all, the romance. 

The plot made zero to no sense for most of the book. Alyssa had no reason to actually trust Morpheus, but did so anyway, and it made me question her intelligence. The plot twist at the end kind of reveals why the author chose to do this, but Alyssa's stupid decisions up to that point stretched my suspension of disbelief to the breaking point. 

And the romance was horrible! It's a love triangle, and it's done really poorly, plus a few elements of the romance that were really toxic and disgusting that were portrayed as romantic. 

Overall, not my kind of book, and I will not be continuing with the series. 

5. Carve the Mark and The Fates Divide by Veronica Roth 

I will be really honest here: I didn't enjoy the Divergent series very much. I still read all three books (mostly to see the plot to its conclusion), but I didn't find them as phenomenal as people are always saying they are. However, they are about 300 times better than Veronica Roth's new series, Carve the Mark. These books were really, really hard to like.
At first, I thought that book one was actually going to be decent. The opening chapters were interesting and engaging, and both of the major POV characters were fairly likeable. But then everything just went downhill. Every time I thought the plot had finally started, it turned out to be another random event that added little to the story and just made me angry. There were so many characters that it was hard to keep track of them all, and only a few had actual plot relevance. It ended up really boring me, which makes me sad, because I did genuinely want to love this book. And when the plot actually got started a few chapters from the end, I decided to give the second book a shot.
The second book was even worse. I DNFed after about a hundred pages of absolute boredom. *SPOILERS AHEAD* Literal intergalactic war being declared, and here I am falling asleep. *END OF SPOILERS* At least with Divergent, the plot was enough to keep me awake.
Overall, I think that maybe Veronica Roth just isn't an author that I can really appreciate. I'm glad that so many people enjoy her books, but I for one just... don't.

4. The Final Six by Alexandra Monir

The Final Six in a nutshell: Not what I signed up for.  I was hoping for a really cool science fiction about space travel and the colonization of Europa. What I got was space camp and some weird bacteria. 

The characterization in this book was patchy and even problematic at times, and the beginning really bothered me because of how a certain issue was portrayed. I don't feel like it was done well, and it felt more like a plot device than anything else. I'm not sure if it's counted as a spoiler or not, so I won't go into it here, but feel free to talk to me more about it in the comments!
There were several cases of deus ex machina that definitely took away from my enjoyment of the story. Overall, I just didn't enjoy this book, despite the fascinating premise and beautiful cover. 

3. Evermore by Sara Holland

As some of you may know, I really enjoyed Everless. But Evermore, the sequel, was just disappointing. Jules, the protagonist, seemed to lose most of her intelligence between books one and two, making some really dumb decisions that Everless Jules would never have done. The romance bothered me so much. There was so much insta-love, it was cringey. For more of my thoughts, check out my Goodreads review, which goes into all the spoilers and why this book just didn't do it for me.

2. Storm Siren by Mary Weber

Storm Siren was not a very highly anticipated book for me. In fact, it was a super spur-of-the-moment borrow for me (fortunately, this was a library e-book, and I didn't buy this!) But it looked interesting, and I was excited to read it once I got it. The first few chapters were fine. I didn't hate them, but they weren't amazing. And then the love interest made his appearance. And everything went downhill from there. The plotline was full of forbidden romance, insta-love, one-dimensional characters, shaky worldbuilding, and no stakes. There was a full blown war going on, but I never felt any urgency. The villains were tacked on and cheesy. (My favorite example: one of the villains hisses wordsss like thisss. Because villains can't talk like normal human beings?) I hate to be so negative about a book, but I literally can't find one positive thing to say about it. Except that it ended. 

I do intend to read another book by Mary Weber in the future, so that I can decide if I like her as an author or not (like I did with Veronica Roth's books) and I can only hope that it will be better than this one. 

1. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

And now, for (arguably) the worst book I read this year: The Cruel Prince. I have linked my review for it above. However, my opinions about the book have sunk considerably since I wrote the review, so what I say here may be slightly different than what I say there. This book was awful. The plot was slow, the characters (every last one of them) were horrible people, and the writing didn't really appeal to me. (Note about my "horrible people" comment: I know that this may have been intentional, but when I can't empathize or sympathize with any of the characters, there's a problem.) I believe I mentioned all of this in my review. But one thing I didn't mention was the romance! The major romance of the series (I won't say who the love interest is to prevent spoiling for anyone who wants to read this book), a romance that is super popular with the fans of the books, is toxic. Really, really toxic. It's gross, and I feel that this relationship was glorified in the novel (and definitely has been glorified by fans of the series.) 

So my original rating of two stars dropped to one for that, and I likely won't be finishing the series. 

So there you have it! Nine of the most disappointing books I've read this year. Have you read any of the books I mentioned here? If so, what did you think of them? Do you agree with any of my opinions? Or do you disagree? Let me know in the comments! 

All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater [Spoiler Free Book Review]

All the Crooked Saints 
by Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: YA magical realism

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description:

Everyone wants a miracle. 
The Soria family has lived in Bicho Raro for generations. They have been blessed with a special gift -- they are able to perform miracles.
Beatriz Soria is emotionless, logical. Not a saint. Not a miracle worker. She's just the brain behind her cousin Joaquin's pirate radio station.
But when Daniel, the Saint of Bicho Raro, does the one thing the Soria's are forbidden to do -- interfere with a miracle -- everything changes. And as the line between the sinners and the saints grows more and more fuzzy, it becomes more and more clear that to save Daniel, Beatriz may need to create a miracle of her own.

Overall Thoughts

Maggie Stiefvater is officially one of my all-time favorite authors. The way she draws her characters, her writing style, the beautiful, vivid settings of her stories... everything about her writing appeals to me so much. And this is coming from someone who hasn't even read The Raven Boys. I loved the atmospheric writing style, the general weirdness of the whole book, and the well-drawn, life-like characters.

The Characters

I loved the way the author introduces us to each new character. We get to see a little bit about who this person is before we move on with the story, but in a way that feels perfectly natural. I loved how all the characters, even the random side characters, felt like people. It was the same way with Stiefvater's The Scorpio Races, so I have a feeling this is something the author is just really good at.

Worldbuilding/Writing

This book was so perfectly weird. Magical realism is a genre I'm quickly falling in love with, and Maggie Stiefvater pulled it off perfectly. The setting -- the Colorado desert -- was a character itself, and it really grounded the story and made it feel so genuine even when there's so much randomness going on (like a girl with a perpetual rainstorm over her head).

Another thing I loved -- the omniscient narrator! I'm not a big fan of the omniscient POV, usually. It feels too distant for me, because I love really getting to know the characters and their struggles and learning alongside them, which I feel a lot of omniscient books can't pull off well. But in All the Crooked Saints, I couldn't imagine it being told any other way. 

Which is another thing I have to say about this book -- nothing was unimportant. The story was a beautiful tapestry, and all the threads lined up and interwove beautifully with each other. All in all, this book was amazing. Definitely a new favorite for me. 

Content

Recommended for ages 13 and up.

Mentions of drinking. One character smokes marijuana. 

A man is said to have murdered a sheriff. Several appearances of some rather vicious dogs. In one scene, characters accidentally are witness to a cock-fight. I don't recall any cursing, but there may have been a few instances of minor swearing. Nothing horrible, anyway.

Kissing.

My Favorite Books of 2019

Hi all!
I'm super excited to be sharing this post with you today. Since starting this blog early this year, I've been trying to expand my reading tastes, trying out a bunch of new books and genres that took me out of my normal bookish comfort zone. And I'm so glad I did! I've found a ton of new favorite books and series this year, some of which have made it onto my top books of all time list.

So, without further ado, here's my list of favorites for 2019!

Photo by Syd Wachs on Unsplash

1. The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

I usually stick by the mantra "don't believe the hype" because there are so many books out there that just don't deserve it? But The Stormlight Archive? It totally deserves every bit of the hype it's gotten, and far, far more. This book is absolutely incredible. The characters are so well-developed, and the worldbuilding and magic system is phenomenal. And it's so intricate. The book follows a lot of different characters' storylines, but they all come together beautifully at the end and just... oh my word, this book is amazing. 

Seriously. This book is (dare I say it?) better than The Lord of the Rings. I'm serious. Go read it. Right now.

I've also fallen in love with several other Sanderson books this year; namely Mistborn: The Final Empire and Skyward. But The Way of Kings is probably my favorite out of all of them so far, and I don't want to fill this list with Brandon Sanderson books, because that would be kind of boring. :P Sidenote: as of writing this post, I'm well into the second book in The Stormlight Archive, Words of Radiance, which I can also say has been phenomenal so far. 

2. This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab

Now, I don't normally read horror... but the description for this book looked so interesting that I had to pick it up. And I'm so, so glad I did. It is definitely creepy, with a good dose of violence (some of it kind of gory) but the characters, the plot, and the themes were all so amazing! This book delves into some of my favorite types of themes -- good vs. evil, what defines being human, etc. And Schwab pulled off the themes so masterfully, it gave me chills at times. 

This definitely isn't a happy book, but it's a good one. I also enjoyed the sequel, though it isn't quite as good, and my brother had some mixed opinions about it. It's definitely not something everyone would enjoy. 

But I definitely recommend giving the first book a shot! For more information, check out my review. 

3. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

This book. This book is so beautiful. The writing style is incredible and atmospheric, perfectly capturing the "feel" of the book and dragging me head over heels into the storyworld. The characters are so well-drawn, and they all feel like real people -- even the random side characters feel genuine. I'm not one for horse stories, usually. But this book? This book is the exception. And I mean, most horse stories don't include flesh-eating, murderous water horses, either, so...
If this sounds like your kind of book, check out my review!

4. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

A Monster Calls is a story about grief and loss and healing, and it's beautiful. It's written in the most simple, and yet utterly heart wrenching way, and I really, really loved it. I want to say more, but because it's such a short book, I'd be giving away spoilers. 

But it really is worth your time! Go read it!

If you're interested, but are still not sure about this book, check out my review. 

5. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

And now for a classic! I read The Outsiders after my brothers read it for school, and I loved it. It's really raw and emotional, with complicated characters and a simple but compelling writing style. I don't have a review for this book up yet, but keep an eye out for it in my collection of mini-reviews that is coming soon. 

And that about wraps it up for now! I still have a month left in 2019, and I really hope I discover a new favorite to add to this list before the year is out. But as it stands, there's my top five favorite books of this year.

Let me know in the comments what your favorite books of this year were! Have you read any of the books I've fallen in love with, and if so, what did you think of them? I'm excited to hear your thoughts! (And also maybe get some new book recommendations... always looking for those. :P)

Some Changes to the Rating System

Hi all! So sorry for not getting a post up today (again). Life's been a little crazy for me, but I hope to get back on track with my posting schedule next week, so expect a new post this coming Saturday! In the meantime, I wanted to let you all know about some changes I've made to the rating system.

I've decided that while rating separate story elements is helpful to me, as the reviewer, it probably isn't very helpful to you, as a reader. You just want to know if the story I'm talking about was a good read or not, right? So from now on, I intend to preface my reviews with a short "why I loved (or didn't love) this book." That way, you can see my opinions about a certain book without reading my full review, and (I hope) it will be more helpful in deciding whether or not the book is right for you!

And that's about it for now!

Let me know what you think about my planned changes in the comments! Also, if you have any ideas for future Saturday posts, just let me know down below! I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Book Review: Our Dark Duet [The Monsters of Verity, #2] by Victoria Schwab

This review contains spoilers for This Savage Song. To read my review for This Savage Song, please follow the link here. 

Our Dark Duet [The Monsters of Verity, #2]
by Victoria Schwab

Genre: YA urban fantasy/horror

My Rating: ★★★★★

Description:

Kate Harker is a monster hunter. And she's good at it.
August Flynn once longed to be human. But now, he has stepped into his role as the monster his brother always wanted him to be.
But there's something else stirring in the shadows. There's a new monster stalking the streets of Verity -- one that feeds on chaos itself.
And August and Kate must ally themselves once again before everything they know and love is destroyed. Or is it already too late?

Overall Thoughts

So, this duology has become my latest obsession. And for a good reason! It really is amazing, and totally deserves a place among my ever-expanding list of favorite books. Our Dark Duet took my expectations, threw them out the window, then took my emotions and shredded them. The last chapter destroyed me. All of that meaning, I really, really loved this book, and now the series is over and nothing will be the same. I did originally give a five star rating on Goodreads for this book, but now that I've had a chance to think about it, it probably deserves a four. I did really enjoy it, but there were some significant issues with it that, while they didn't bother me, still impacted the quality of the book.

The Characters

The characters were, again, phenomenal. August's character arc throughout the book was excellent, and while I hated to see him give up his longing to be human, it was so well-written, and was resolved so well that I really can't say anything negative about it.
Kate was still amazing, and I loved her a lot. She's got a lot of strength and resolve, and her character voice is so strong. Both her POV and August's were both equally gripping, and I liked that, since a lot of multi-POV books usually have that one character you just can't stand. You know what I've mean. You've read books like that before. Fortunately, that's not the case with Our Dark Duet. 
Also, we get villain POVs! At the end of This Savage Song, we learned that Sloan was still alive, and we also witnessed the birth of Kate's Malchai, Alice (who is terrifying, guys. Terrifying.) The villains are actual characters in both this book and This Savage Song, which makes them more lifelike, and raises the stakes that much more for me.

Plot/Pacing

The plot was good, well-paced and hard to stop reading. The reason I gave the plot only 4 stars was because certain elements of it were not explained by the end of the book -- none of the unexplained plot points bothered me, as I thought the entirety was handled really well, but it could be annoying to some readers who like to have everything neatly wrapped up and resolved at the end. Just know that there are dropped and unexplained plot threads, but that it wasn't enough to make me hate the book. It's really hard for me to talk about the plot without spoilers, so I'll leave it at that. I will say this, though -- if you enjoyed the plot for This Savage Song, you will also enjoy the plot in Our Dark Duet. 

Alright, and let me take a moment to fangirl about the themes! This duology honestly tackled its themes so well. The themes of good and evil, right and wrong, that were introduced in the first book are continued here, and I was really satisfied by the entire thing.

Everything else I liked about this book is, sadly, in spoiler territory. So what are you waiting for? Go read it!

Content

Recommended for ages 15 and up.

Violence is similar in descriptiveness and frequency with the violence in This Savage Song. There are several descriptions of murders and people dying; these could be disturbing for anyone sensitive to violence. It's treated as a horrible thing, and is not gratuitous (in my opinion.) One villain character finds joy in killing and violence. Several hand to hand fight scenes, including descriptions of blood.
Several instances of strong language, including several counts of the f-bomb. Again, this didn't really bother me, as it wasn't used for shock value.
Sexual content is limited to kissing. A minor character is gay. Another side character is non-binary.

Spin the Dawn [Blood of Stars, #1] by Elizabeth Lim

Hi all! Some of you may have noticed I didn't post anything on Saturday. Funny story behind that, honestly. I really don't have a good reason to give you... I just completely forgot it was Saturday until 3:00 in the afternoon. 
But I'm back now, with a review I wrote up months ago for a book I read months ago and just kept forgetting to post. Enjoy! 

Spin the Dawn [Blood of Stars, #1]
by Elizabeth Lim

Genre: YA high fantasy

My Rating: ★★★★

Description: 

The war is finally over. In its aftermath, with the Emperor Kanujin's wedding on the horizon, a decree is sent out to twelve of the A'Landia's finest tailors -- compete in a series of trials for a chance to become the Court Tailor. A prize some would kill for.
Maia Tamarin knows the risks of competing in her father's place. It's illegal for a woman to enter the competition, and if she's found out, she will be put to death. But Maia is not one to pass up such an opportunity. Disguised as her brother, she enters what soon becomes a tense and backstabbing competition for the place of Royal Tailor.
But even she could not be prepared for her final challenge: craft three dresses for the Emperor's betrothed -- one of the laughter of the sun, another of the tears of the moon, and the third of the blood of stars.
It's an impossible task... and with the day of the Emperor's wedding fast approaching, it's a race against time to finish the dresses before the peace treaty falls apart, and A'Landia is once again plunged into war.

Overall Thoughts

This book was different than what I expected, but not in a bad way. The writing style and plot had a way more fairy tale feel than what I first anticipated from a modern fantasy, but I enjoyed it. I thought that it was a breath of fresh air to read something different. (Also, I love fairy tales!)

The Characters

The characters were excellent. I liked Maia instantly. She really cares about her family, and I liked her different relationships with her father and brothers. I also liked that, unlike a lot of fantasy heroines in this day and age, she doesn't really know how to fight. Instead, she sews. And sewing is her superpower. I love that the author showed how Maia's sewing was something to be proud of, not something to be ashamed of because it's "womanly." Thank you, Elizabeth Lim! 

I also liked the love interest, even though I wasn't really sure what to think of him at first. He ended up becoming my second favorite character, next to Maia (obviously). He's interesting and well-developed, and I can't say any more because his character arc is rife with spoilers.

Plot/Pacing

The plot wasn't as strong as it could have been, but I still enjoyed it. It honestly felt like the story was divided into two pieces -- the first part, which focuses on the contest to become the royal tailor, and the second part, which focuses on Maia's quest to craft the three dresses. The plot was paced well, but I found myself wanting more from it... it felt as though certain scenes were shortened or skipped over to keep the pace going, and I almost wish those scenes had been included in the story. I feel it would have heightened my enjoyment of it as a whole.

Worldbuilding/Writing

The worldbuilding was engaging and interesting. I had a really strong sense of place in all of the scenes, different details helping me to imagine the wildly different settings -- from a desert to a snow covered mountain top to the Emperor's palace. The magic system, while loosely defined, was interesting, and I felt that it really fit the fairy tale vibe I got from the rest of the story. (For instance, magic scissors. Fairy tale lovers know how special they can be!) 

The writing style was what first clued me in to how much I was going to like this book. It really is a beautiful style -- slightly more old-fashioned than many books I've read recently, but not boring or slow in any way. It was just... pretty. And I adored it. Definitely one of the high points of the novel.

I really enjoyed Spin the Dawn, despite the issues I mentioned above, and will definitely be picking up the sequel, Unravel the Dusk, when it releases in 2020. 

Content

Recommended for ages 15 and up.

One or two instances of swearing, but nothing incredibly offensive. 

There was some kissing, as well as a few suggestive comments. Maia has to dress up as a boy to join the competition, and during this time some of the other characters believe that she is involved with another man: something they call a forbidden romance. 

There is a scene where a couple undresses, and a brief description (without being graphic) heavily implies sex. This part bothered me, both for personal reasons and because I didn't feel that the characters in question even knew each other that well. But it was only a small part of the story, and not enough to ruin my enjoyment of it as a whole. 

Violence is typical of an average fantasy, but nothing is graphically described. 

Men drink alcohol, and at one point Maia drinks too much and suffers a hangover the next day.

Movies That Were Better Than the Book

I'm imagining a lot of you readers are gasping in outrage at the title of today's discussion. It's a long-running, well-voiced opinion in the bookish community that "the book is always better than the movie." And while that is usually true, in my own humble opinion, there are a few movies that have surpassed the book in quality of storytelling or accessibility. So that's what this post is going to be about.
Just a quick disclaimer: just because I'm saying that a certain movie is better than the book does not mean that I'm saying that book is terrible, or that you're stupid if you happen to like the book better. These are purely my own opinions, and you are entitled to yours!
That being said, here are four movies that I personally believe to be better than the books.

1. Mortal Engines

So, I DNFed this book this year, so maybe I don't have the most informed opinion about this. However, my brother (who read the complete novel) tells me he feels the same way, so maybe my opinion is actually valid?

The writing of the book was very hard for me to get into, and I found that some of the character's actions didn't make sense for their personalities (for example, I found Hester's backstory reveal much more convincing in the movie than in the book.) Plus, I feel that the world of Mortal Engines translates much better in film than on page. It's very visual, and so the movie was much more impressive in that sense as well. 

However, I do want to complete my read of the book, because I do love the concept, and apparently the book did do a better job with some things, so I'm excited to be able to compare the later chapters with the movie's take on the same events. 

2. The Maze Runner

Now, I didn't really enjoy The Maze Runner book at all. For my more in-depth opinions about it, you can check out my review, but basically, I found the characters to be unrelateable and the writing to be too juvenile for my tastes. However, the plot was quite well-paced and engaging, which made the movie adaptation much more enjoyable to watch (though I don't really think it was an incredible movie, just an enjoyable one). Note that I'm only talking about the first movie. The second two have some other problems (which I'm not going to get into here.)

3. The Lord of the Rings

I buried this one in the middle of the post because I'm mildly terrified of voicing my opinion about it. It's a wildly unpopular opinion, and so before you all get mad at me, let me explain. I'm not saying the Lord of the Rings books are bad. On the contrary, they're really, really good. But here's the thing: Tolkien originally wrote the trilogy (it is a trilogy in my opinion, though some like to think of it as one book, which is perfectly okay) as a mythology. It wasn't really meant to be a novel the same way Mistborn: The Final Empire or Eragon were. Tolkien wrote the trilogy as a mythological story of England, in a similar vein as Beowulf or the Norse mythologies. 

The movies condense the storyline, remove the unnecessary scenes and characters (such as Tom Bombadil, who, though important to the mythology, was not important to the story of Frodo and the Ring), and also manage to stay true to the original feel of the books as well, which is not something that a lot of movie adaptations do. 

4. The Secret of Moonacre

I watched The Secret of Moonacre several times before I even realized it was based on a book (called The Little White Horse), so I am a little biased towards the movie anyway. However, I was really excited to read the book, and so I was disappointed at how different the book was (and not exactly in a good way.) While I did appreciate the Christian themes that were present in the book, I felt that the movie had much better conflict and resolution of that conflict, with characters actually struggling to achieve their goals, which the book didn't really have. 

And that about wraps it up! I know that a lot of you probably disagree with some of these opinions, and I'd really love to hear your own thoughts! Were there any movies that you liked better than the book? Let me know in the comments!