Review: Learn to Draw True Beauty
9 months ago
Showing posts with label PARANORMAL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PARANORMAL. Show all posts
Thursday, March 3, 2011
My Overall Rating:
a solid 5/5 :D
Age Recommendation:
As the other books were, this is still definitely for a slightly more mature reader. Just the themes that it deals with are a bit inappropriate for the younger audience. It's a dark series and the romance is most definitely suggestive at times. I would give it about a PG-13 to 15 rating. But like I said, this is all based off of maturity. The reading level is good for any strong independent reader and up.
Cover Art:
The cover art is fantastic. I absolutely love it. In the forest, in the snow. It's almost like running away. And once you're reading the book, you really begin to understand how all of the covers tie in. It's subtle, but it's there. And the subtlety is exactly what I love about it. It makes you guess and question it. Just like the book itself.
Re-read and Recommend?:
Of course! And I would recommend this book series to adults as well. It's not at the limit of some young adult books where they are truly intended for young adult and young adult alone. It is written so well and even though it is not difficult to read, it's not elementary to read either. It does cause you to actually use your brain. And I love that.
Summary:
Camelia and Ben have discovered a powerful bond: They both possess the power of psychometry, the ability to sense things through touch. For Ben, the gift is a frightening liability. When he senses a strong threat or betrayal, he risks losing control and hurting people. Camelia's gift is more mysterious. When she works with clay, her hands sculpt messages her mind doesn't yet comprehend.
Before either teen has a chance to fully grasp these abilities, an unresolved family tragedy resurfaces in Camelia's life, irrevocably changing everything she cares about...
My Thoughts:
I absolutely LOVED this installment. The suspense, the mystery, and the romance made this book a total page turner. It would have been read in one sitting if not for school, but I did get it done in two. I just couldn't put it down. And reading it at night makes the story a little bit creepier, but it also makes it so much more enjoyable.
I feel that by this point of the series, I REALLY know the characters. Camelia and Ben's relationship is just so involved and complex and you really start to feel all of the angst and pressure that Camelia is feeling throughout the entire book. I do wish, however, that we could at some point get a glimpse into the mind of Ben. I would really enjoy seeing his thoughts and feelings, and not just his expressions of them.
In this book, Camelia's powers are becoming more and more developed and she is learning of her connections and similarities to her Aunt Alexia (whom we FINALLY get to meet). And once again, these powers of psychometry are stirring up some difficulties for Ben and Camelia.
You may remember from the other two books, the side chapters or add-ons at the end. In the first two books, they were anonymous diary entries. Giving you some form of insight to other characters we have met. In this book, Laurie changed it up a bit. You were reading a transcribed therapy session. Again, anonymous. And these therapy sessions really helped add to the suspense and he mystery of the whole book. And at the end of each session, there was a crossword puzzle. With only a select few of the clues given each time. Again, leaving the reader puzzled. But I felt that with this included, the reader was more a part of the story than just reading along. You could actually participate. And I would suggest to anyone reading this book, DO THE CROSSWORD!! It's really very interesting. Plus it's a fun little game. Get it? :D
This book really tests the power of trust and believing in oneself and others. Reliability and the meaning of friendship. Plus all of those teenage angsty issues, remember those? Cliques, relationships, parents...need I go on with those, haha. And like I mentioned up top, I would most definitely re-read this book and recommend it to everyone. If you have not yet read anything by Laurie Faria Stolarz, go out and get one of her books. Whether it is the Touch series or the Blue is for Nightmares series. Because once you do, you'll be hooked.
Deadly Little Games by Laurie Faria Stolarz
Publisher: Hyperion
Pages: 304
Purchased from store
Summary from Amazon Product Details
Saturday, May 30, 2009
My Overall Rating:
4.3/5
Age Rating:
This book is age appropriate for 15 and up. There are some disturbing references that may not be appropriate for a younger audience, such as: violence, stalking, and some mild sexual references.
Cover Art:
The cover is fairly well done. I do wish however, that it gave a little more insight to the story, but I guess that it just adds to the mystery of the whole novel.
Summary:
SOME SECRETS SHOULDN'T BE KEPT
Until three months ago, everything about sixteen-year-old Camelia's life had been fairly ordinary: decent grades; an okay relationship with her parents; and a pretty cool part-time job at the art studio downtown. But when Ben, the mysterious new guy, starts junior year at her high school, Camelia's life becomes far from ordinary.
Rumored to be somehow responsible for his ex-girlfriend's accidental death, Ben is immediately ostracized by everyone on campus. Except for Cameila. She's reluctant to believe the rumors, even when her friends try to convince her otherwise. Instead, she's inexplicably drawn to Ben...and to his touch. But soon, Camelia is receiving eerie phone calls and strange packages with threatening notes. Ben insists she is in danger, and that he wants to help--but can he be trusted? She knows he's hiding something...but he's not the only one with a secret.
My Review:
I was so psyched when I got this book. I started reading it right away and I couldn't put it down. That is how good this book was. I was constantly on the edge of my seat, so anxious to find out what would happen next. Much like when I read Stolarz's Blue is for Nightmares series. This book is full of suspense and mystery, and for my fellow romantics there is a sweet little romance in there as well. I was disappointed however with Stolarz's character development. I don't feel like I really know the characters all that well. And the names weren't too memorable either which is important, especially in a series. I am hoping that as she progresses through the series, we will come to know Camelia and Ben more, as well as Wes and Kimmie (the two supporting characters). Even now as I am writing this, I am having to look back at the book to get the character names correct.
The plot development of this story was very solid though and Stolarz stayed true to her writing style. Throughout the book, we follow Camelia on her search to discover the secrets about Ben, her new classmate, and the identity of her mysteriously creepy stalker. We experience two POV's getting the story from both Camelia and her stalker through journal entries. Even though these journal entries give some kind of insight as to who the stalker may be, you never know until the end. I was so sure as to who it was in the beginning of the novel and I was completely WRONG. Stolarz did an amazing job with keeping the stalkers identity a secret.
Where as some of the situations in this story are easy to relate to (grades, friendships, and family relationships), others such as the stalking and paranormal experiences are not. It was rather fascinating witnessing the paranormal experiences that Camelia and Ben had. Each one leaving questions behind and the shared puzzlement with Camelia as well as the frustration of trying to get her friends to understand her position and beliefs. The whole stalking scenario left me absolutely horrified for the well being of Camelia and the other students' well being, seeing as it was so foggy to discover who the stalker may be. I didn't want to walk alone at night because of those feelings for about a week haha.
This book was a terrific read and I would highly recommend it to anyone who has to the time to go out and get a copy. It gives a great rush of suspense and also gets the wheels in your brain turning to figure out who the mystery stalker is. If you love paranormal stories this one is great. And for my fellow romantics, the love story is really cute, even though I wish the romance was more developed in this book, I am expecting that it will go further in the next installment of the series, Deadly Little Lies, which comes out November 24th this year. This book is definitely re-readable, especially since there is a second installment to the series. So, if you get the chance, go out and get Deadly Little Secrets so you can add it to your list of books to read.
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