The Darkest Minds [The Darkest Minds, #1] by Alexandra Bracken

The Darkest Minds [The Darkest Minds, #1]
by Alexandra Bracken

Genre: YA dystopian

My Rating: ★★

Description:

When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something had changed. Something that scared her parents so much that they locked her in the garage and called the police. Something that got her locked up in Thurmond, a government camp for children who survived the brutal disease ravaging the nation and gained something new -- something dangerous.
Ruby is one of the dangerous ones. Now, six years later, she tries to stay under the radar, knowing that if the camp authorities discover what she really can do, she's sentencing herself to something far worse than Thurmond.
But when her abilities are revealed, she's forced to flee for her life. On the run, she meets a group of kids also fleeing from the authorities, and joins in their quest to find the last safe place for kids like them -- East River.

Overall Thoughts

I'd heard so many raving reviews for The Darkest Minds that I was almost sure it was going to be one of my new favorite books. Sadly, that wasn't the case. While I didn't hate the book, I didn't love it, either -- I don't feel like it deserved all the hype that it got. 

Let me explain why.

The Characters

The characters were okay. I never really got attached to Ruby (mostly because of the motivation issues I talked about), but I did like her backstory, and the reveal was well done. I liked the little girl, Suzume, a lot, and I liked the friendships between the other characters (Suzume, Chubs, and Liam). Liam was not exactly your typical YA dystopian love interest, which I also really appreciated. 

However, like I mentioned before, there were too many different villains, and it felt kind of silly at times because of this. I feel that if the author had stuck to one or two different villains -- and maybe made them actually be different in some way -- it would have been better. 

Plot/Pacing

This book had no real plot. The overarching goal is to "find East River", but Ruby, the protagonist, isn't fully on board with that goal. She goes along with the others anyway, but for a good portion of the book, finding East River isn't even a top priority for her. When she finally does decide she wants to go there, her motivations are rather shaky. I didn't really see enough of the drive behind her motivations to really "get" her story. 

There was a lot of action -- but much of it felt contrived. There were a bunch of different people chasing them, and so there were a lot of different chase scenes, as well as scenes where they would be cornered by the people hunting them. But there were so many villains chasing them it was almost laughable. One of the three villains literally has no purpose to the plot apart from chasing Ruby and the others down.

Writing/Worldbuilding

Now, this review is making it sound like I hated the book, and that's not true. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it, either. So now, I'm going to talk about the things I really enjoyed about this book. 

1) The first three or so chapters. These chapters are basically backstory -- and I loved it. The first line of chapter one hooked me right away, and the sense of urgency and tension in these early chapters was really well done. I also liked the one character who featured in the backstory, Sam. She was great. 

2) The world building. I liked the whole idea of kids getting different powers, and how everyone was scared of them. I liked how they were divided into five different classes of powers, and that the abilities weren't totally random, but had to be from one of the specific categories. I thought that Ruby might have some totally random power when I first started reading, but luckily that didn't turn out to be true!

3) The end. I could not have predicted that ending, and I think it was a really good way to end the book (it was actually what made me give this book the extra .25 stars.)

So, while this novel wasn't everything it was cracked up to be, it was decent. I'll try to read the sequel, to see if the author improves at writing story goals and motivations for Ruby, but it's not insanely high on my TBR at the moment. Whenever my hold on Overdrive goes through -- that's when I'll read it. 

Content

Recommended for ages 15 and up.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Suicide, attempted sexual assault.

Swearing is fairly infrequent, but does include very strong language, especially towards the climax of the book.
Sexual content includes kissing, mentions of boys being attracted to Ruby (in a sexual way; this is clearly shown as being wrong), a boy touches Ruby inappropriately even after she's made it clear she doesn't want him to, an attempted sexual assault.
Violence is common and sometimes disturbing. Certain characters can influence other characters to do some horrible things, including at least one count of suicide (on page). Characters, including children are shot and killed. Descriptions of blood. A car explodes, causing a death.

Fairest [The Lunar Chronicles, #3.5] by Marissa Meyer

Hi guys! Life has gotten in the way of my normal posting schedule (again, haha), so instead, here's a book review of Marissa Meyer's backstory novella for Queen Levana, which took me way too long to get around to reading. 

Fairest [The Lunar Chronicles, #3.5]
by Marissa Meyer

Genre: YA dystopian retelling

My Rating: ★★★★

Description: 

Mirror, Mirror on the wall, who is fairest of them all?
Princess Levana Blackburn is desperate for love. In a world where fidelity is a joke and true love is nothing more than a fairy tale, Levana wants to be wanted -- at any cost.

In the chilling prequel to the Lunar Chronicles series, Queen Levana's rise to power is revealed -- from a girl starved for affection to the ruthless Lunar Queen.

Overall Thoughts

Learning a backstory sometimes makes me feel more sympathetic to the villain. With Levana's backstory in Fairest, Marissa Meyer only shows us how messed up the Lunar Queen really is. Seeing Levana's twisted motivations and justifications for her actions was terrifying, and definitely helped make her scarier in my mind. This is a prequel, but I wouldn't recommend reading it until after reading Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress. There are some spoilers for those books in this one, so if you haven't read them yet... please don't continue reading this review!

Thematically, this book was terrifying, about the descent into villainy. It also touches on topics of manipulation and what love looks like (more through Levana's twisted version of love and the contrast with the love shared by Solstice and Evret.) Because the book was so short, the themes didn't really take a lot of precedence, but they were still well thought out.

The Characters

The characters were well-drawn, in true Marissa Meyer form. I liked the conflicts between the characters, and how each character's dialogue was unique and distinguishable from the others, which I feel is something Marissa Meyer excels at. Most of the characters were not likeable characters -- not by any means -- but they felt real, and I guess that just made them even scarier.

Plot/Pacing

The plot takes place over a number of years, starting when Levana is fifteen and going all the way up until she's crowned Queen of Luna. It was fast paced and interesting, showcasing not only Levana's backstory, but also including the cameos or mentions of several important characters in the Lunar Chronicles series, including Winter, Jacin, Sybil Myra, and Selene. The plot itself was very inward-focused -- centering on Levana's desire to be beautiful, her turmoils, desires, and desperation as opposed to having a more outward focused story goal.

I don't feel like there's much more to say about this book, except that, if you like the Lunar Chronicles, you will like this book.

Content

Recommended for ages 15 and up.

There was more sexual content in this book than in the Lunar Chronicles series -- nothing explicitly described, but there were a few descriptions to show that characters were intimate with each other (not graphic), and numerous mentions of infidelity in the Lunar Court. Levana uses her glamour to manipulate another character to do what she wants (which includes her sexual desires.) There is one minor character who is presumably gay. 

Violence including a character remembering being disfigured in a fire. A child is presumed to have died in a fire. A man is shot in the chest. A character stabs another character. A woman dies in childbirth.  A character imagines another character dying in numerous, horrific ways. 

Swearing limited to minor cursing.

Wires and Nerve [Wires and Nerve, #1] by Marissa Meyer

This review contains spoilers for The Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer. 

Wires and Nerve [Wires and Nerve, #1]
by Marissa Meyer

Genre: YA dystopian graphic novel

My Rating: ★★★

Description:

The war with Luna is over. Under the rule of Queen Selene, peace between Earth and the Moon seems finally possible. But rogue wolf-soldier packs are threatening the alliance.
It's up to spunky android Iko to try to keep the peace -- before the tenuous treaty between Earth and Luna snaps.

Overall Thoughts

When I heard about Wires and Nerve, I was naturally really excited. A graphic novel set in the Lunar Chronicles universe? That features cameos from characters I'd grown to love in the original four-book series? Yes, of course I want to read it! However, when I actually got around to picking it up, it kind of disappointed me. While it's definitely not a horrible book, it is wanting, especially compared to the original series.

The Characters

The characters... were okay. I liked Iko a lot, but I didn't really care very much about any of the others (even the ones I'd grown to love and care about in the Lunar Chronicles! Which makes me really sad.) Thorne was a bit over the top goofy at times, which I didn't appreciate, and none of the other characters really got enough page time for me to get a sense of who they are now after the war. I think Winter and Jacin only made it into one scene. And Kinney? Honestly, I remember very little about him, which probably isn't a good thing.

Plot/Pacing

The plot was solid and enjoyable. It's basically exploring what happened to the rest of the Lunar Special Operatives still on Earth after the Lunar Revolution, which I thought was interesting. Iko has become a sort of spy/assassin who goes around the world to deal with the LSOPs who refuse to bow to the new Lunar queen. And then she finds out about a bigger plot that threatens the peace treaty, and... well, things happen. I did really enjoy the plot, and so that's a definite plus for the story. 

Worldbuilding

The world was perfect, though. I mean, we are talking about the world of the Lunar Chronicles, so... 

The graphic novel never really went into talking about any of the details of the world or anything, but I still liked it because the world building definitely builds off the original series.

Art 

As for the art style... don't get me started. It didn't fit the feel that the Lunar Chronicles gave me at all! It was almost too cartoony for my tastes. Also, the guys all looked exactly the same. Not great when you're trying to keep track of who's saying what. The cover art is lovely, but most of the images in the book don't even come close to it. 

Overall, a solid graphic novel, but nothing special. Keep your expectations low for this one. 

Content

Recommended for ages 12 and up.

Some sci-fi violence. Kissing. I can't recall anything else?

Spoiler-Free Book Review: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

The Maze Runner [The Maze Runner, #1]
by James Dashner

Genre: YA dystopian

My Rating: ★★

Description:

When Thomas wakes up in a strange clearing called the Glade, with no memory of anything but his name, he's desperate to get out. But soon, his life becomes less a search for truth than a race for survival.

The Glade is the only safe haven against the mysterious beasts that lurk in the Maze beyond -- and the Maze is the only way out. Thomas quickly signs up to become a Runner -- one of the few who dare to venture beyond the walls of the Glade to try to find an escape route. 

But when a girl is left in the Glade, all the rules seem to fall apart, and Thomas realizes he may have signed up for more than he bargained for. 

Overall Thoughts

When I picked up this book, I was expecting something that lived up to the amount of hype it received. I was honestly disappointed. This book did not draw me in. 

I had previously seen the movie, and was also not impressed, but I'd heard that the book was better, so I thought I would give it a try. After all, the concept itself is intriguing -- amnesia, boys trapped in a shifting maze, strange monsters... it's compelling. But the execution itself was not to my taste. There were elements I liked, just not enough to make up for the parts I didn't. 

I hate writing reviews that are less than positive, but I also feel that they're necessary, so here goes.

The Characters

Characterization was not a strong point in the novel. 

The main character, Thomas, experiences mood swings seemingly at random for the sake of the plot, and some of his desires and motivations were hard to understand, because it seemed the author was forcing them onto him. 

Teresa was plain annoying. Her character, while serving a role in moving the plot along, was very flat. 

The side characters were unremarkable. Most seemed more like cardboard cutouts, and I never really grew attached to any of them. That makes me sad, because I really wanted to like at least one or two characters. But for some reason, none of them appealed to me.

Plot/Pacing

I'm glad to say that the plot for The Maze Runner was fairly solid. The story goal stayed consistent, while still offering a few key twists. 

The pacing was excellent, and never slowed (which was one reason that I managed to read the whole thing.) In this respect, the book was well thought out. I like comparing the plot of The Maze Runner to a video game -- not particularly brilliant, but paced perfectly to keep readers engaged.

Worldbuilding

Set in the center of a giant shifting maze, the concept for the world was interesting. There were monsters (with mildly horrifying descriptions), a strange illness, and a mysterious elevator that brings up new kids and supplies to the kids living above. 

Later on in the novel, something happens that shows everything in the Maze in a new light -- but not one that I'm sure I completely understand. It left gaping plot holes in the storyworld. Without giving away spoilers, I was slightly confused.  

There was also a random telepathy element that seemed to have no bearing on the plot apart from adding elements of mystery.

Content

Recommended for ages 14 and up.

There was a good bit of violent content, as well as descriptions of blood. Several characters die on-page. Monsters were described in semi-detail, and could scare sensitive readers. Detailed descriptions of what characters look and act like when they are poisoned by a certain creature, which could be disturbing for some readers. 

Sexual content is limited to a kiss or two, as well as some suggestive comments. Teresa is the only girl in the Glade, and there are several comments about that. 

Language is mostly made-up, along with a few cases of mild swearing. 

Rude humor is fairly common and lessened my enjoyment of the book; it seemed juvenile, in my opinion.

Characters use a medicine in order to cure the disease caused by the poison.