February Round Up!

Fifty Shades Freed

Divergent

World War Z

Labor Day

Pretty Little Liars

What did I learn this month?

• I (again) need to pick up the pace. I only read 5 books this month (again)
• I can get through about two books a week if I really set my mind to it. 
• About 6 books behind on my book challenge :[

S.

Oh You Pretty Little Liars...

I've been a loyal viewer of the Pretty Little Liars television series ever since it first aired back in 2010. After watching it for four years I'm more confused than ever. I'm not sure who to believe A is. It went from Toby to Ian to Mona to Ezra and now to Mrs. Dilaurentes herself. I figured it was time to read the books thinking they would shed some light on this crazy show. I heard rumors that the books are completely different than the actual series which could be completely awesome or completely annoying. Either way the books are turning out to be quite interesting. This first book chronicles Hanna, Aria, Spencer, and Emily after their BFF Alison goes missing and turns up dead. This first book is pretty well translated in the first season of PLL. I feel like I'm reliving all of A's crazy shenanigans over again, but I like it. This book gives subtle hints at Mona being A which is pretty clever and I'm happy the show at least stuck to that aspect. There are some pretty big differences in the way the characters are portrayed and the tone of the book in general though. Emily and Spencer are portrayed just like their characters on screen but in the books Hanna is much more slutty and Aria is much more of bitch. The tone of the books is much more adult. The fact that Hanna is slutty, they talk about thongs and blatantly about sex. They smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol. Even the sexual stuff between Jenna and Toby is watered down in the show. In the show I just remember Toby and Jenna "kissing" but in the book Toby "molests" Jenna. It's very different but I like the more adult tone of the book and I'm looking forward to the rest of the books.

After reading the first book in this series I had to see what was going to happen next. Flawless is the next installment in the Pretty Little Liars series. This is where I believe the book and television show start going in different directions. There are a couple things that stay the same but most are different. I personally don't remember Sean and Aria dating in the show and I don't remember Hanna being so crazy when it came to Sean, but I do remember Toby and Emily going to a dance. These are minor changes that make a big difference. The craziest thing about this book that will effect the rest of the series is the fact that Toby dies in the last part of the book. Can we say #mindblown!? I did not see that coming at all. Getting back into this series has made me want to go back and re-watch the entire series to see what they changed and didn't change. I also fell like the books are all running together like I'll forget if something happened in the first or second book. I'm not sure if that is a good or bad thing. Either way the series is turning out to be pleasantly awesome. I picked up the third book today so look out for the review about that soon!

S.

World War Z & Labor Day

I heard rumors that this book was completely different than the movie that came out starring Brad Pitt, and it turns out the rumors were really true. It's as if the movie just took the title of the book and decided to make a hollywood zombie movie out of it. I have to say the book wasn't as good as I thought it was going to be. I think the idea of stories chronicling the "Zombie War" is a cool idea but when I actually read the stories, I wasn't that interested. I'd say about 75% of the book was filled with military stories. Granted, I do love the military and stores about it, but these just didn't hold my interest. The two stories I liked the most were told by actual civilians who had made it through the "Zombie War". There was one military story I liked that it encompassed actual action and not just special tactics used in the war. The story was about a woman names Christina who's plane had gone down, all her other plane mates had died. Christina was able to get a radio signal and she had the help of this anonymous woman whose job it was to help military officials. After Christina was rescued, we find out her radio had gone out before her plane even crashed and there was no person who actually existed on the other end of the radio. I'm not sure if it was by the hand of God or just her hallucinating but that was an amazing/trippy story. Another story was about an Asian man who was so wrapped up in his computer that he never realized that his parents were gone. He spent three days climbing down from his nineteenth floor apartment with sheets. To this day he still does not know what happened to his parents. Besides these two stories I felt like there was something missing. It's like the when the punchline of a joke is missing. The reviews said this novel was supposed to be chilling but there was something missing from the eye witness accounts. Even though this book is obviously a work of fiction, I was amazed at how someone could write an entire HISTORICAL novel without any real facts. The way Brooks wrote about each instance with such depth was pretty amazing. I'm not sure if i could ever do that. 

(Okay, this is going to be a really short review). I must say, this might be the first time I liked a movie more than its original book. I read this book because I recently saw the movie version of it starring Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin. I cried three times. I am not a movie crier but this one really got to me. The entire movie was beautiful from beginning to end. Both the book and movie are about the love, the loss of love, and making a home where you'd least expect it. This book is filled with beautiful quotes and the movie took those quotes and put them on screen. The fact last I loved the movie so much is making it hard for me to talk about the book. The book was forgettable, the movie will stay in my heart for a long time. 

S.

Divergent

"One Choice Can Transform You"

At first I wasn't sure if this book/ series would interest me which is why I only have the first book in my collection. I know there is a big following for this series and I kept hearing that this book is just like Hunger Games which kind of turned me away because I wasn't the biggest fan of that series. After reading this first book, I don't think this book is anything like The Hunger Games series. I actually enjoyed this first book a lot more than Hunger Games. I might need to read Hunger Games again but at this point I definitely like Divergent better. This book is all about the struggle to fit in. Not only fitting in but feeling like you belong. It's one thing to fit in but to actually feel like you belong and are a part of something, that is a different and uplifting feeling. Today's world is all about following the latest trends to fit in with the "in crowd". You can struggle all you're life to "fit in" but sometimes you will never feel like you actually belong. Sometimes you might feel the most comfortable with a group that isn't the most popular but that's okay if you personally feel like you belong there. In Divergent, Tris "fit in" in Abnegation but she never felt like she belonged until she made the choice to become Dauntless. As dangerous as this choice was, she knew it was the right one and I respect that. 

I also respect the sexiness level of the book. Tris is a 16 year old girl and she is dealing with 16 year old feelings, especially when it comes to Four. I thought the way their relationship blossomed was actually very realistic. Starting out with subtle flirtations and transitioning into something more. Granted the boyfriend/ girlfriend title seemed to come a little quick but sometimes when you know it's right there shouldn't be any holding back. I am actually very excited to see where this relationship goes. 

The only similarity I can see between Hunger Games and Divergent  is the barbarity of it all. I thought all the teenage killing in Hunger Games  was pretty gruesome. Also, I hadn't been exposed to anything like that before. Granted there wasn't too much killing in Divergent but all the fighting and kids getting beat up was a bit overwhelming. I know it's just a book but I am  a softy when it comes to physical fighting. I mean I could barley watch Shia get beat up in Lawless  or an MMA fight on the television at Buffalo Wild Wings the other day, but that's besides the point.

Overall, I thought this book was very entertaining. I was quite surprised that I liked it so much and I honestly cannot wait to see the movie now. I'll read the other books a little later in the challenge so look for those reviews coming soon. 

S.

...And I'm Spent: The Conclusion of My Fifty Shades Adventure

"I want your world to begin and end with me"

What a perfect series to write about on Valentine's Day! But..can I just say how happy I am that this series is over. By the end of the 3rd book I honestly couldn't read fast enough!
In this last book, I really started to hate Christian. In the beginning he just seemed like your typical controlling business man but by the 3rd book he has gone full "American Psycho" on us. He wants Ana's world to begin and end with him and that does not sit well with me. Maybe it's my cynicism about love but I feel like that wouldn't be the healthiest thing. In relationships don't you need a little space sometimes? A little alone time? No one can be around someone else 24/7 and not get a little antsy. Sometimes space is good to regroup and get your thoughts together. You also don't want to turn into a person who's thoughts and ideas are all constructed based upon another person. That looks like losing oneself to me and that is pretty scary. Sadly, Ana began loosing herself around the 2nd book. I'm happy that in this book she stood up to Christian a little more. Granted he fucked up...more than once!

You would think by the 3rd book, Christian's insecurities would diminish a bit but sadly they are in full swing. He's insecure about Ana not changing her last name, turns mad when Leila visits Ana at her office, and goes completely psycho at the announcement of the baby. This had to be the moment when I hated Christian the most. 1. He assumed that Ana did this on purpose when it's clear that she was upset about the pregnancy as well 2. He ran back to his ex and got drunk with her. That's definitely not the way to handle the news of an unexpected pregnancy. If my HUSBAND reacted like that I'd be livid. That is a complete breach of trust no matter which way you look at it. I'm glad that Christian realized that he fucked up royally. It's too bad that it took Ana getting beat up and landing in the hospital for him to realize that.


I would give the series as a whole 4/5 stars. It's not profound literature but it's the first erotica series I made it through and as absurd as it was, it did what it was supposed to do; it excited me, angered me, and made me swoon all at the same time. This series is so much more than just erotica. It seems that many people only focus on the erotica, but as the series went on the erotica became less and less and just focused on the life and love of Christian and Anastasia. This is the exaggerated telling of love in the 21st century. It's romantic love mixed with angry love, jealous love, insecure love, and sexual love. Our "hero" is as insecure as a 5 year old boy and our "damsel" is by no means in distress. Living in a world where women are more powerful than ever and communication is lost is translation, I can truly appreciate this tale of flawed love.

Happy Valentine's Day!

S.

January Wrap-Up!

Well it's the end of January. The first month of my challenge is over. I only read 5 books this month. (I'm counting Fifty Shades Darker as part of my January reads because I finished the biggest chunk of it in January). Coming out of this month I learned that I need to pick up my reading pace. To complete my goal of 100 books I need to read at least 8.33333 books each month. At this rate I am 3 books behind! 

Books Read in January

Lone Survivor

Life After Life

Carrie

Fifty Shades of Grey

Fifty Shades Darker

Here We Go Again: My Second Encounter with Mr. Grey

"I'm a sadist"

As we all know Fifty Shades Darker is the second installment in the Fifty Shades Trilogy. After reading the first one, Fifty Shades of Grey, I really didn't know what to expect from this book. Usually the first book sets everything up and is exciting because everything we are being exposed to is new, and then we get to the second book and it's like..okay..what now? In this book we get the continuation of the erotic love story between Mr. Christian Grey and Anastasia Steel. I feel like I don't know what to say about this installment. I was taken aback by the first book but this second book was just okay. Nothing spectacular for me to marvel at. I've heard the third book is people's favorite book so I'm interested to see what's next for the married couple. 

I had a couple issues with this book but at the same time there were things I really liked. I really thought this second book did a great job at portraying the modern day Prince Charming. For girls, Prince Charming is this perfect guy who is supposed to ride up on a white stallion and sweep you off your feet. Granted, Christian does sweep Ana off her feet but there is no white stallion and their are actual flaws. In today's world, even the most "perfect" guy has insecurities which I can respect. I like that even though Grey is this super sexy, multi-billion dollar mogul he still has deep seeded issues that shine through. He is a real man with a flaw, a sadistic flaw, but a flaw none the less. I can see why so many women have fallen in love with him. Ana even has her own insecurities and even though her and Grey have gone through very different life experiences they both do not feel good enough for each other. These are realistic insecurities that come up in relationships. I must say, I thought Grey's official wedding proposal was beautiful. "You have my heart, and here are the flowers". I even shed a tear, and I am not a book or movie crier. 

The only thing I didn't like about the book was around page 200 when I feel that Ana loses her independence. She allows Grey to order for her without any hesitation. In the first book this would not have been accepted. Her independence rears it's head up every now and then but by the end of the book she has given herself completely to Grey. I don't know, maybe this is how "can't live without each other love" is supposed to go! I'm also a little disturbed by how quickly this relationship evolved. From a chance meeting to marriage in the span of a month. The magic of books and movies. I will let this slide for the time being. 

I'm interested to see how the series ends, but I think I need a break from Mr. Christian Grey, but not to long of a break. Until next time..

S.