Review: Cruel Summer by James Dawson

Cruel Summer by James Dawson
Released: 1st August 2013
Publisher: Indigo
Reason for reading: Loved Hollow Pike and it sounded awesome 

Goodreads synopsis:

A year after Janey’s suicide, her friends reunite at a remote Spanish villa, desperate to put the past behind them. However, an unwelcome guest arrives claiming to have evidence that Janey was murdered. When she is found floating in the pool, it becomes clear one of them is a killer. Only one thing is for certain, surviving this holiday is going to be murder…

A compelling and psychological thriller - with a dash of romance

My thoughts:

Sometimes you go into a book thinking it's gonna be pretty good and it exceeds your expectations to the point you are almost stupefied. This is exactly what happened with Cruel Summer. I mean this in a good way. I loved Hollow Pike and from that I knew that James was very good at creating real, relatable, diverse characters, building suspense and mystery and telling a chilling tale. But Hollow Pike could not prepare me for the masterpiece that is Cruel Summer.

The whole story is so carefully engineered in a way you simply can't fully appreciate until you've turned the last page. It is a masterclass in foreshadowing and characterisation. It has so many twists and turns that I was totally disorientated. Just when you think you have one thing figured out, you get hit over the head with something else (you'll appreciate that when you read the book). 

I went to James' launch for Cruel Summer and he asked who I thought had committed the murder. I confessed that I had narrowed it down to two suspects and James commented that it the 'why' was more interesting than the 'who'. This is bang on. Not only for this book, but for this genre. When you read/watch a lot of crime-y things you get very good at figuring out the 'who'. It's not (usually) to do with stunning detective work on your part but more down to some un-quantifiable algorithm of experience, hunches and clues. But the 'why' is the  fascinating part and it's the 'make or break' part as well. If the 'why' is flimsy, clunky, or clearly created at the last minute when the author realised that the villian actually needed a motive, the whole thing falls down. This was not the case in Cruel Summer. I never guessed the 'whys' (and there were a couple) and they were seamlessly, subtly, and oh so perfectly blended into the plot that I didn't pick up on a lot of the clues that were given. 

Not only was the plot a total knock-out, but the characters were pretty awesome too. From Ryan and Alisha, who narrated, to the rest of the 'cast'. Their personalities, issues, relationships were laid out with almost Rowling-esque care, and, as usual, James made sure that no one was excluded. Ryan's narrative style, treating the adventure as though it were a TV show, was inspired and original. And hilarious. A points it was like watching a film (or a TV show), the scenes were that well described. Ryan and Alisha were funny, sassy and likeable; a winning combination. 

TL;DR: Cruel Summer is a perfect, sangria-like mixture of murder mystery, thriller, horror and contemporary. While the murder mystery element might be the red wine (fitting) it is totally enhanced by the undertones of everything else. A fascinating, beautifully woven story that left me amazed, thrilled, amused and slightly horrified. A perfect blend. 

Review: Torn by Cat Clarke

Torn by Cat Clarke
Release Date: 22nd December 2011
Publisher: Quercus 
Source: Bought for Kindle
Reason for Reading: UK author loved by everyone

Goodreads description:

Alice King isn’t expecting the holiday of a lifetime when she sets off with her classmates on a trip to the Scottish wilderness, but she’s not exactly prepared for an experience beyond her darkest nightmares… 

Alice and her best friend Cass are stuck in a cabin with Polly, the social outcast, and Rae, the moody emo-girl. Then there’s Tara – queen of mean. Powerful, beautiful and cruel, she likes nothing better than putting people down. 

Cass decides it’s time to teach Tara a lesson she’ll never forget. And so begins a series of events that will change the lives of these girls forever...

A compelling story of guilty secrets, troubled friendship and burgeoning love.

My thoughts:

I've sat back and watched the love that exists in the blogosphere for Cat Clarke. I've seen the release of each of her books with their intriguing premise and evocative covers and I've thought to myself "one day". Unfortunately, when the day finally came for Torn, I just didn't love it as much as I wanted to. 

My main issue with Torn is that it made me feel uncomfortable. Some people, I guess like isn't the right word really, but that sort of uncomfortable, tense feeling is something they look for/appreciate. A lot of people watch cringe comedy for instance, which is similar. I just cannot tolerate that feeling at all. So that feeling being present, all the way through this book, really impacted my enjoyment of it. It's good that a book can affect me so much, but when it is causing such an adverse reaction it isn't that great. 

At first I thought the plot was a bit far-fetched but when I thought about it, I could totally see it happening. A prank gone horribly wrong, scared girls panicking and making totally the wrong call and then leaving it too late to come clean. It made me totally suspicious of the disappearances we see in the news. 

I thought the characters were totally authentically teenage which was really great; Cat Clarke captured that teen voice perfectly and they were so diverse. I didn't really connect with any of them that much though, which didn't improve how I felt about the story. Rae was probably my favourite character and I really felt for her throughout this whole story. I really liked Jack as well he was so sweet and kind and caring and I just felt so sorry for him all the way through. I wanted him to know what happened but at the same time I didn't want anymore pain caused. 

The ending happened the way it had to happen and whilst I know it was an intentionally ambiguous, make-your-own-mind-up end I couldn't help but feel that it had to end there simply because there was nowhere else to go with the story.

TL;DR: I really wanted to love this one, but unfortunately I just...didn't. I can see why it has such appeal though, it was a really good book, it just wasn't for me. So if you're into a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat and give you that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach, this is the book for you. 

Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer ( Mara Dyer #1) by Michelle Hodkin
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Children's Books
Release Date: 1st March 2012 (UK)
Rating: 5/5

Goodreads description:

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong

My thoughts:

It's not often I write a gushing review. I can usually be fairly level-headed, lay out my likes and dislikes and give a reasonable rating. But when it comes to Mara Dyer, the only thing I want to say is:

"AHHHHHAAHHHHHOMGOMGOMGONGWTFISHAPPENINGAAHHHNOAHNOAHNOAHNOAHNOAHOMGHEJUSTSAIDVAGINAANDAGAINANDOMGWTFISHAPPENINGAHAHAHAHAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

*takes a breath*

However, I realise that isn't exactly a satisfying review, so I will try to review it properly. Emphasis on try.

We wake up, with Mara, in a hospital bed, her being asleep for 3 days. That is the last thing I am sure of. Everything that happens from there on out has such a dream-like, surreal quality to it that I'm still not quite sure which parts were real. It's rare for me to get that "What the FRICK is going on" feeling but I revelled in it. I loved it. I enjoyed not having a fricking clue. It was interesting, it kept the book fresh and it kept me riveted.  


Mara herself was a fantastic heroine. You felt her confusion, her frustration, her fear and her determination. I loved her, because she tried. She was a little bit scary, vaguely sociopathic and altogether awesome. She didn't just give in to what was happening to her, and she didn't just give in to Noah either.


Noah....sigh. I feel like Michelle Hodkin looked in my brain, plucked out my favourite male qualities and made Noah just for me. I loved him, I loved his humour and enigmatic behaviour. I loved his ultimate reason for pursuing Mara and I loved his chase of her. I also love that she didn't give in straightaway, like I'm pretty sure I would've. She stuck to her principles until he SHOWED her that he actually wasn't a complete dick. I loved that he basically admitted to creating that persona for himself, because it was easier and more fun. I loved their relationship, how slow-burning it was. The amount of TENSION between them was insane. Their conversational exchanges were hilarious, I often found myself laughing at the things they said, having an actual physical reaction to the atmosphere they created. 


The writing was exquisite; it really captured the feel of every scene and emotion. I genuinely felt like these were real teenagers too. They spoke the way teenagers spoke, about thing teenagers talk about. There was no censorship for more sensitive readers. The book mentions words and topics I don't think I've really seen much in YA which I found refreshing because honestly, I really think these things are handled far too delicately in a lot of books. The language often felt lyrical and added to the atmosphere created by the plot; the feelings of confusion and disorientation that permeated the pages. 


The ending was just...wow. I kinda loved how it was so abrupt and a bit confusing because it embodied the themes of the rest of the book. I seriously cannot wait for the next one.

Essentially, I adored it. It's the best book I've read so far this year (out of over 40) and it's one of the few books where, as soon as I finished it, I wanted to flip back to the front and read it all over again. 
 

 

Review: The Missing/Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann

The Missing/Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann
Released: 1st March 2011
Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
Rating: 2/5

Goodreads description;

Kendall loves her life in small town Cryer's Cross, Montana, but she also longs for something more. She knows the chances of going to school in New York are small, but she's not the type to give up easily. Even though it will mean leaving Nico, the world's sweetest boyfriend, behind. 

But when Cryer's Cross is rocked by unspeakable tragedy, Kendall shoves her dreams aside and focuses on just one goal: help find her missing friends. Even if it means spending time with the one boy she shouldn't get close to... the one boy who makes her question everything she feels for Nico. 

Determined to help and to stay true to the boy she's always loved, Kendall keeps up the search--and stumbles upon some frightening local history. She knows she can't stop digging, but Kendall is about to find out just how far the townspeople will go to keep their secrets buried...


My thoughts:


The writing style of this book instantly got my back up, which was a bad start. I just really didn't like it. It's told in 3rd person present tense but it felt really detached and strange. It just jarred me in a really unusual way, I can't really explain what it was that I didn't like, I just really didn't like it. I really think present tense books should be told in first person, or atleast a more personal third person than this one was. 


I didn't much like Kendall either. She has OCD  and a 'sort of' boyfriend in Nico and I couldn't help but feel she was stringing him along a bit. In my opinion, she had no redeeming features at all. I think the part her OCD plays in the story was a bad idea, I really didn't agree with it at all but I can't really say any more without spoiling the story. It sorta made OCD into this positive thing and I think that was wrong.  

The secondary characters of Nico, Jacian and Marlena were alright and made the book slightly more readable. Jacian was your typical surly teen, dragged away from a life he loved to live in farm country, and Marlena his sister was pretty much his opposite. I understood the need for the contrast between Nico and Jacian but I found the whole affair surrounding them slightly distasteful. 

The actual mystery was less crime thriller more paranormal which I did find disappointing. It annoys me because I always start these books and I HAVE to finish them because I HAVE to know the end and yet they pretty much always disappoint me. The storyline of this dragged on and yet the end was sorta confusing and happened really quickly. I found the whole 'we' aspect really creepy and not in a good way either.

Overall I was really not impressed with this. I continued to read to find out what happened because it wasn't a long book, otherwise it would've been a DNF for me.  I was disappointed as I've heard great things and was hoping for a fantastic YA crime thriller. 

Waiting on Wednesday

Unravelling by Elizabeth Norris

Release date: 7 June 2012 (UK) 24th April 2012 (US)

Publisher: HarperCollins (UK) Balzer + Bray (US)

Goodreads description:

Two days before the start of her junior year, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit by a pickup truck and killed—as in blinding light, scenes of her life flashing before her, and then nothing. Except the next thing she knows, she’s opening her eyes to find Ben Michaels, a loner from her high school whom Janelle has never talked to, leaning over her. And even though it isn’t possible, Janelle knows—with every fiber of her being—that Ben has somehow brought her back to life. 

But her reincarnation, and Ben’s possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI-agent father’s files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what’s right in front of her: Everything that’s happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben’s sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she’s going to need to uncover Ben’s secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process. 

From debut author Elizabeth Norris comes this shattering novel of one girl’s fight to save herself, her world, and the one boy she never saw coming

Okay, so I know I don't do Waiting on Wednesday much but holy-frickin-god when I got the email about THIS one I just had to share it. Um, hello paranormal element, probable conspiracy theories and unlikely love interest, I'm Caitlin, let's go on a date. It comes out in JUNE in the UK, but April in the US (though I much prefer the UK cover) You can add it on  Goodreads here