Beastly by Alex Flinn

I went to the library! Can you believe it?! And I read a book in a day! *sing song voice* My Intro lines are getting way too lame. :/ ;)

Genre: YA Fairytale Retelling 

Pages: 304

Type: Standalone 

Goodreads Rating: 3.85 Avg

Published: 2 Oct 2007

My Rating: 4/5 

Synopsis: I am a beast.

A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright--a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.

You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll stay this way forever--ruined--unless I can break the spell.

Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly . . . beastly.

Review: 

  This book was turned into a movie, ya guys! And Alex Pettyfer is in it! *swoon*

  So. The book was a modern fairytale Retelling of the Beauty and the Beast. I think the story took a new take by focusing on Beast instead of Beauty. Our Beast is named Kyle and he's this hot, arrogant, rich guy who treats poor and ugly people like crap. And so, this witch casts a spell on him. He'll be a beast forever unless within two years he finds true love and gets a kiss from her. 

 

  I really liked the fact that Alex focused on Kyle. I'm not going to tell who Beauty was, since it's very interesting to find out who Beauty is on your own. 

  I really liked the fact that there was some sort of hidden goal behind the story. It was about how you nobody is less. It taught Kyle a lesson that you know, ugly people exist and it is not supposed to be a problem. Nobody is perfect and just because you are pretty on the inside means you're pretty on the inside too. Like I said, I liked how it had a greater goal. 

  Now what made me deduce a star was that, the book wasn't anything different than the fairytale. The only difference I found was the time change. Otherwise, there wasn't much difference. 

  Also, the book lacked in humor. It wasn't like, entirely dark and sad and stuff. But it did not have any lightness to it. Although, I did enjoy the characters quite a bit. My favorite character would have to be Will. He was Kyle's tutor. Blind. I really enjoyed his company. Dunno why, but he had a soothing character. 

  Which, brings me to my other issue, the characters did get a bit annoying at times or the story would just drag on. Something, that no one ever enjoys. 

  Overall, I enjoyed the book, not the best out there, though. Albeit, if you're into fairytale Retelling, you might enjoy the book. Or even if you're into romance. Because, by God, this one made my heart ache. 

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Wow. Look at that eye! (What a lame beginning...)

Genre: YA Dystopian/Romance

Pages: 338

Type: #1 in Shatter Me Trilogy

Goodreads Rating: 4.04 Avg

Published: 15 Nov 2011

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

Synopsis: I have a curse

I have a gift

I am a monster
I'm more than human

My touch is lethal
My touch is power

I am their weapon
I will fight back

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

My Review: 

Woah. What an intense book! I honestly have like, nothing but good things to talk about this book. But, let's not be bias. I had a wonderful time reading this one. Read it in like, hours! All the rave about this book is completely right! 

  It had all these plot twists that I enjoyed extremely. You know, you never knew what was around the corner. I enjoyed the writing tremendously. It was one of the first things I noticed and what stayed with me through out the book. Writing is one of the most important things in a book. If you're writing is a hit, I think it's safe to say your book is a hit too. I really found the whole striking things out unique. I don't think I've ever read a book with strikes. It makes the reading experience more reader friendly and interesting. 

  I also loved the characters. They went through quite a lot of development over the span of the book. Who they were in the beginning, they weren't in the end. And I absolutely loved the love triangle thing! I'm a sadistic person and a lot of times, I want something to happen with the villain of the book. It makes things all the more interesting. Obviously, in the end, I want things to end well. But that does not mean it's bad to hope for some action, you feel me? I'm super confused between Adam and Warner. We'll see where the story goes. 

  We did see a bit of world development, which was good. My problem was that it was a bit too in the end of the book. The book just ended so abruptly leaving the reader hanging. Makes you crave for the next book. 

The Duff by Kody Keplinger

Sheesh, guys. I'm SO sorry I didn't do a review in like, ages. Just haven't been in the mood to, with exams and things. But well, better late than never, right?

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Pages: 280

Type: Standalone

Goodreads Rating: 3.93

Published: 1-Jan-2010

My Rating: 4/5 

Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “the Duff,” she throws her Coke in his face. 

But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him. 

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn’t such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.

Review: 

  First off, what does that cover even mean?! As far as my memory goes, and, since I just finished this book, goes pretty well, there was zero reference to bubblegum. The girl, I get. Bbg, do not understand I.  

 

 Anyways, the book itself was quite good. It was your typical NA book without explicit scenes. Except here, we're talking about the female protagonist actually making the first move and using the guy. Plot twist right there. It was a good one, I have to say. The plot was quite interesting and the title of the book really drew me in. 

  I wanna say the writing style wasn't bad either. It wasn't unique either, though. What honestly made me take down that one star, was the way the book almost seemed to drag at times and, the characters. You see, characters, are the one of the fundamental organs of a book. You need to have good and strong characters since they are the story. It's through them that you get to know a story. It all comes down to them. You have to have strong protagonists in your story. And, I don't think that Biance, the main protagonist is the best. She has had her moments, but they weren't enough to cover her flaws. Don't get me wrong, nobody is flawless. But hers were a bit too annoying at times. She would get worked up over the smallest of things and I just didn't agree to the way she'd keep putting things off. Saying how it's not her place to say anything about it. You know. Running away from things. Uh, they were a bit annoying.

I also felt like we readers didn't get to know too much of Wesly. So that sucked. Cuz you always wanna know your boy. I do think though, that the side characters were really great! I loved them and just... Really liked how the story didn't just focus on Wesly. It integrated family and friends in too, which, to be honest, you don't see around too much. 

The whole story, seemed to get a bit boring at times though. Because in more places than one, you'll hear Bianca saying how she can't stop thinking about Wesley and then suddenly thinking how she should be disgusted by him. And I never got why she was so mean to him and hated him so much! He never did anything to her, I believe. Just because he's a player doesn't mean you go all hardcore hate on them when they did no wrong to you!

Overall, I liked the book a lot and can't wait for the movie to come out! If you like YA with a lot of swearing and sass, this book is for you!