Five Favorites- Speculative Fiction

Yes, here I am posting about speculative fiction, a gathering of genres I am not shy about admitting I stay away from, if you can't tell by my general lack of enthusiasm about it. I mean, the whole reason why I grouped them all together under the label of speculative fiction is because I didn't have enough material to draw it out and have a science fiction, a fantasy, a paranormal, a dystopian, and a horror list. I admit though, even with my drawing it out I am a bit embarrassed to say I had a hard time reaching five, since really only three were definites. But I need more time with my historical fiction and thriller lists, and fall is literally the only time I voluntarily bother with speculative fiction so I thought it would be nice to talk about it.

So, without further ado, here are my top five speculative fiction novels! In no particular order, of course.

1. The Unwind Dystology

  Originally, this list had a lot of nostalgic favorites such as The Girl Who Could Fly and the Percy Jackson series, but I haven't revisited those in a long time and while they both had a big impact on my life, I don't feel the need to go back to them like I did to the Unwind series. This is one of my favorite series of all time. Don't be put off by the dystopian genre classification. In fact, the first book came out three years before The Hunger Games swept onto the scene. So, what is this book about? Basically, it's set some undetermined time in the future after the Second Civil War, which was fought over abortion and resolved by the Unwind Accord, a law passed saying that 13-18 (later 17) year olds could be "unwound", retroactively aborted with all their parts used for transplants, which was a scientific discovery by then. We follow three teens, the typical YA trio of two-guys-and-a-girl, Lev Calder (he goes through like a million last name changes over the course of the series) who is a tithe which means he is going to be unwound willingly at the age of thirteen, Risa Ward, a state ward unwound because of budget cuts, and Connor Lassiter, a troubled teen whose parents unwound him as a last resort and also my biggest fictional crush. Him and Risa are also my number one OTP. There's also a lot more going on and that's just the first book. One interesting thing about the series is that the first book, Unwind, can be read as sort of a standalone, and then the other three books- UnWholly, UnSouled, and UnDivided are kind of like the actual series. It's a really great, really fucked up, and really underrated series, and has been reigning as one of my favorite books ever ever since I first read it back in middle school. It's basically my Harry Potter.

2. Marina

  Are you sick of hearing about this book yet? Well, you're probably going to hear about this book a lot more in the upcoming months. Because Marina is the current holder of my favorite book of the year, ever since reading it all the way back in March, and almost instantly became one of my favorite books of all time. This is a Spanish YA horror novel with heavy Gothic influences. It's about a boy, Oscar, who goes to this boarding school in Barcelona. As he wanders around the old part of town, he meets a man named German Blau and his daughter Marina who he becomes close to. From there, they find themselves getting involved in the dark and twisted world of Mijail Kolvenik, an inventor in postwar Barcelona. It's a very complex, complicated plot to describe, so normally I just tell people that it's basically a mix of Phantom of the Opera, Bioshock, Frankenstein, Edgar Allen Poe, and the science fiction-y parts of The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue. It's just really damn good.  

3. The Road

  Cormac McCarthy's The Road is a post apocalyptic nightmare of a book that hits you hard in the feelings. The prose is a thing of beige beauty, simplistic with almost every sentence perfectly formed. It's bleak and depressing and even horrific, but it has an almost hopeful undertone about finding something from nothing. I could tell you that this book is about a man and his son trying to not just survive but retain their humanity in a ruined world, but that's almost too simple a summary. Reading this book is an experience, one best gone through without any prior expectations. It was my favorite book of last year and has become one of my favorite books ever.

4. Six of Crows Duology

  You can tell how much I read speculative fiction because every book on this list except one I read either last year or this year. The answer for that is simple, until last year I read almost all contemporary, historical fiction, and thrillers, as well as a lot of nonfiction. I didn't start develing into fantasy until I started getting into Booktube and that made me want to try really hard to read fantasy but alas, I couldn't do it. That being said, Six of Crows was a really great discovery, one that even I was able to really get into. Mostly because I loved the Amsterdam inspired setting and the interesting blend of 16th-17th century Netherlands with late 19th-early 20th technology and clothing all in one fantasy world. This book captured me with its atmosphere and cast of characters, a group that reminded me so much of the Unwind crew. This is one of the biggest fantasy duologies out there, so I won't waste your time talking about the plot. My favorite characters were Jesper, Kaz, and Inez, I hated both Nina and Matthias, and I felt very little towards Wylan except in relation to Jesper, in which case I was all over him. I was less invested in the second book, which disappointed me in a lot of ways, but it is still a really great book duology, even for someone not into fantasy at all.

5. The Illuminae Files

  So, we had a horror novel, 2 dystopians, and a fantasy. What about science-fiction? And well paranormal, but most people including me have kind of stopped taking those books seriously since the rise and fall of the paranormal empire. So science fiction. More specifically, space science fiction. I mentally refer to it as hi-sci-fi because I like the way that sounds. I reach for those books even less than I do fantasy because I can't stand space and have little patience for endless musings on the universe. With the exception of The End from The Tsar of Love and Techno because that last story is beautiful and you know it. But yeah, the Illuminae Files. Also known as, why the hell did I like this book. It's just a ton of fun to read, that's why. It's no great literature or anything, it's just a quick, funny, and violent read, with a great first novel, a less great but still strong second book, and hopefully a third book that will round out the series nicely, even though the second book did not feel like a middle novel at all. This is another book that I think is fairly hyped up, so I also won't bore you with plot. My favorite characters are Ella, Kady, Grant, and the AI. This book was just fun escapism, and really, what else do you need from science fiction?

What are some of your favorite speculative fiction books? Have you read any of these books? What do you think about them? Leave your thoughts below!

The Rattled Bones by SM Parker Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“But I think this island holds more history than the university could ever uncover. And there are endless ways for secrets to slip out into the world.”- The Rattled Bones, SM Parker

Unearthing years of buried secrets, Rilla Brae is haunted by ghostly visions tied to the tainted history of a mysterious island in this haunting novel from the author of The Girl Who Fell.

Maine-bred, independent Rilla Brae is no stranger to the deep. She knows the rhythms of hard work and harder seas. But when she experiences the sudden death of her father, the veil between the living and the dead blurs and she begins to be haunted by a girl on a nearby, uninhabited island. The girl floats a song over the waves, and it is as beautiful as it is terrifying. Familiar and distant.

Then Rilla meets Sam, a University of Southern Maine archeology student tasked with excavating the very island where the ghostly girl has appeared. Sam sifts the earth looking for the cultural remains of an island people who were forcibly evicted by the state nearly a hundred years ago. Sam tells Rilla the island has a history no locals talk about—if they know about it at all—due to the shame the events brought to the working waterfront community. All Rilla knows for sure is that the island has always been there—an eerie presence anchored in the stormy sea. Now Sam’s work and the ghostly girl’s song lure Rilla to the island’s shores.

As Rilla helps Sam to unearth the island’s many secrets, Rilla’s visions grow—until the two discover a tragedy kept silent for years. And it’s a tragedy that has everything to do with Rilla’s past.

Normally, when I dislike the book, I dislike all sorts of things by it, the plot, the characters (especially the characters), hell, usually the writing is the thing I have the least problem with. Not in this case. Okay, the characters weren't the best, but the writing was just... bad.

The annoying thing about the writing is that it could almost be actually kinda good. And I tried to see that. But there's just something about it that just grated me. The writing is, well, a lot of things. It took me quite a lot of reading to figure out exactly what offended me so much about it. And then it hit me. I think the problem is that Parker doesn't know how to transition from one action to another, so it sounds kind of stilted and choppy, and that combined with the elaborateness of the sentences she's writing makes for a very debut-y writing style. This would be fine, EXCEPT SHE'S NOT A DEBUT AUTHOR. This is kind of a good example of what I'm talking about: "I'm grateful when the doorbell announces Brenda Sherfey on the step offering tuna casserole and condolences. I abandon Brenda's food to the counter because the fridge is already crammed with sorrow."

I also got a bit of a paranormal romance novel vibe, though I'm not quite sure why, especially since I've only ever read a grand total of one paranormal romance novel. 

Parker also does little annoying things, like narrate every action, make everything sound overly dramatic as if every little things has a deeper meaning, and, the most annoying thing out of all of it, stating the obvious. Like in this case: "His words confirm that he's 'from away'- a transplant to our state." No shit, I got that because the sentence before he commented about the directness of Mainers. If I said I like how nice people from the Midwest are, would you think I was from the Midwest? No, of course not. I despise it when people waste words. 

In fact, the writing reminds me of a point and click game, or more specifically, one of those Her Interactive Nancy Drew games. I was have expecting some sentence like "I jiggle the door handle. It's locked." to turn up at one point. Actually, if I'm mimicking her writing style, it'd probably be something more along the lines of: "I jiggle the door handle. It won't open. It's locked.". Look, okay, I have a strong nostalgic connection the those games. My sister, best friend at the time, and I all used to crowd around my sister's laptop or one of our two old desktops on some Saturday afternoon back in middle school and play them. I think we only ever actually finished one or two of them, but we still loved them. But that doesn't necessarily mean the narrative style of the games translates well over to print media.

One last point about the writing. I think Parker really needs to stop adding over the top metaphorical imagery to every goddamn sentence. Like this one: "I felt a shiver crawl up the ladder of my spine". Sure, if it had just said "I felt a shiver crawl up my spine" I might have thought it cliche, but I wouldn't hate it. For some reason, the addition of the ladder just irritated me. It still doesn't make it original, and just adds unnecessary weight dragging the sentence down. She really can't leave well enough alone, can she?

So what else is bad about it? The characters are extremely unoriginal. Rilla is your typical Strong Independent Womyn, who comes from a long line of Strong Independent Womyn- including her grandmother, who somehow managed to be a voluntary single mother despite growing up in a time where voluntary single motherhood was not a thing. Sam is like a watered down Augustus Waters, one who doesn't have a romantic attachment to Rilla. He's passionate about things, gives long, poetic speeches, and has quirky exchanges with our main character. He's also basically the personification of the male version of the much-hated Not Like Other Girls trope. Rilla constantly reminds us how he's Not Like Other Boys, he apologizes for interrupting her, he doesn't sit too close to her, he's smart and driven, and forgive me for saying this, but it seems very sexist. Like, a lot of people complain about how sexist the Not Like Other Girls trope is, because it puts down other women or whatever. The Not Like Other Boys is kind of like that, but in a different way, painting men as being idiotic, macho pigs, but not Sam because he's a gentleman. If you are going to condemn one, you must also condemn the other. 

There's other cliched characters, the wise, old, and spiritual grandma (where do all these wise old grandmas come from? Most of the sweet old ladies I know do things like go to church every Sunday, talk about their grandkids, and make sure nobody leaves before they've all gained at least ten pounds), and the old stodgy villain, who goes by the name of Old Man Benner because this is a bad mystery novel, we need a sexist old codger. There's also, in a nice change of pace, a dead dad and a missing mom instead of the opposite. This would be better if the mom's leaving wasn't excused. Interestingly, she seemed kind of unaffected by both. Frankly, if she didn't always explicitly always remind us how much grief she felt, I wouldn't have known at all that she felt any. In fact, the author is so bad at showing things she has to tell us things directly because if she didn't, I would think Rilla is either a robot or a sociopath.

All of this is a shame, because the plot really was a good one. The island of Maluga was an interesting place to set a book, and one with a fascinating history. If Parker had been a more original character creator or a much, much better writer, this book could have really shone. In fact, it probably would have reminded me much more of the Her Interactive Nancy Drew games. I kind of wish it was, called something like the Ghost Girl of Maluga Island because that would have been way more fun than this book ended up being.

2.5 out of 10

In the Skin of a Monster by Kathryn Barker Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“We've all got good in us and bad in us, and miles of murky greyness. I suppose the difference is what you choose to focus on.”- In the Skin of a Monster, Kathryn Barker

Three years ago, Alice's identical twin sister took a gun to school and killed seven innocent kids; now Alice wears the same face as a monster. She's struggling with her identity, and with life in the small Australian town where everyone was touched by the tragedy. Just as Alice thinks things can't get much worse, she encounters her sister on a deserted highway. But all is not what it seems, and Alice soon discovers that she has stepped into a different reality, a dream world, where she's trapped with the nightmares of everyone in the community. Here Alice is forced to confront the true impact of everything that happened the day her twin sister took a gun to school ... and to reveal her own secret to the boy who hates her most.

Remember how I said Aussies were the rulers of contemporaries? The reason I specified contemporaries was because I haven't really read anything else by them. Sure, I attempted one Justine Larbalestier mystery, but didn't find it too great. But if I was looking to expand my knowledge of Australian books to include fantasy, I think I began with the wrong book.

So, has anyone read the Skinjacker trilogy? Neal Shusterman's middle grade into YA trilogy? I have. I don't know if Kathryn Barker has either- it's a bit more obscure than his other YA serieses, like Unwind or Scythe- but this book strongly reminded me of that trilogy. 

I mean, on the surface they don't have much in common. The Skinjacker trilogy is about a land where dead kids get stuck when they are knocked off course on their way to the next world. This book is about a nightmarish dream world in the Australian Outback. But once you get past that, there's a ton of similarities. Like the fact that in both books, the main "enemy" is a girl in a school dress, how the items in both worlds get there, the idea of monsters who kill the kids caught in the world, the way the kids forget their names and old lives and so on. Hell, even Lux reminded me of Mikey McGill. So already, I'm proving Melina Marchetta wrong by saying that this book isn't nearly as original as it appears at first glance. But I liked the Skinjacker trilogy, not nearly as much as Unwind but you know, I still had fun reading it. So I ventured forth into In the Skin of a Monster, hoping it'd be another indie hit for me.

I know the summary makes a big deal about the whole dreamscape thing, but I thought it would be metaphorical and clearly not a real thing, just a journey for Alice to go on to discover her grief. Nope, I think the dreamscape is supposed to be a real thing. Ugh. In this case, it would have been better if the dreamscape was an imagined thing, because then the book's messages would have hit a lot harder, but then again, we couldn't have had Lux and Alice fall in love! Wonder what their ship name is- Luxice? Alux? (oo, I like that one!) In all seriousness, Lux is like a leftover from paranormal romance novels circa 2010, back when Lauren Kate's Fallen and Becca FitzPatrick's Hush, Hush were all the rage. 

Also, the actual messages were, frankly, nothing I haven't read in the many school shooting books I've read before. The whole no one's all good or all bad, can you mourn someone who did such a horrible act, etc, is all well-worn territory, making what could have been an utterly unique book (though one I probably still wouldn't have been that fond of, to be honest) into just another school shooter novel. 

Although, I do wonder how much more effective the book would have been if it had been a straight up contemporary. Sure, I get that the whole selling point is the dreamscape, but the parts I was more interested in was the contemporary stuff, about Alice and her sister and their past and the shooting. In a lot of ways, I think Barker wanted to have her cake and eat it too, so to speak. She wanted both the contemporary school shooting novel and the paranormal desert dreamscape book. In the end, they felt muddled, and I left the book unsure of the point of it all. She tried to explore the reasons for the sister to shoot up the school, but they felt unrealistic and like Barker was trying too hard to make the sister endearing. Too much about the dream world, I think, and even then I wasn't that clear on the whole "dream world" thing. Not very good world building, in my opinion.

This all being said, I admit Barker's writing style is very nice. Great descriptions, interesting original ideas, just lacking on the execution. 

It's funny that, in my opinion, a big selling point is the originality of the story. Simply because once you get past the dreamscape idea, there's very little actually original about it. The dreamscape reminds me of the Skinjacker trilogy. The school shooting reminds me of a million other school shooting books. The romance reminds me of paranormal romance novels back when they were the shit. In the end, I don't think I'd recommend this other a million other books with the same basic idea but are done much more skillfully than In the Skin of a Monster.

5 out of 10

The Somnambulist's Dreams by Lars Boye Jerlach Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“Everything is never what it seems, but sometimes what you see, is so obvious that you cannot make sense of it.”- The Somnambulist's Dreams

A lighthouse keeper on the coast of New England discovers a small collection of seemingly deranged writings that have been left behind by his somnambulant predecessor. When he begins to read them, he swiftly becomes an unwitting participant in a nebulous narrative that not only defies time and space, but brings into question his own sanity.

Being from New England, lighthouses hold a special place in my heart. While I love all varieties of lighthouse, I admit my favorites are the ones on some small, rocky island off the coast of or seemingly in the middle of the ocean. Whenever I see a picture of one or pass by one in a boat, I like to imagine the people who lived and worked there, maybe even families, and wonder what drove them out there to essentially live a life of solitude.

Of course, I'm being romantic about it. Realistically, I know the life of a lighthouse keeper couldn't have been much fun. Being away from everyone else, a slave to the light, only company maybe a cat or dog and the passing ships. Having to wait for supplies every month or every two months, etc. I don't think I would have enjoyed that kind of life, myself.

And yet, any book that has to do with lighthouses I usually end up picking up (except The Light Between Oceans, funny enough, maybe that's because it seems like one of those novels in the Women's Fiction category alongside My Sister's Keeper or The Memory Keeper's Daughter). This book was no exception. A bunch of odd writings detailing the deranged dreams of the old lighthouse keeper? I never clicked buy so quickly.

And it was exactly what it was advertised as. From the first letter I was hooked. I enjoyed the trips I took in the grief twisted mind of Enoch Soule, and in particular had fun guessing where or who was in each dream of his. Some I got right away, like Poe or Bowie, but others I had to guess at a bit more. For instance, I can't tell whether the artist who did the chessboard is Marcel Duchamp (of the signed urinal fame) or Rene Magritte. I thought it might be Duchamp, because of the bicycle wheel on the stool, but then he said "Ceci n'est pas une pipe" which is Magritte. I don't know. I admit, I'm not as versed in this area of art history as I should probably be (though I am a casual admirer of Magritte's work- of course, I just like surrealism. Duchamp, on the other hand, loses me).

The writing is very Scandinavian. Even without a name like Lars, I could tell he was from somewhere up north. It reminded me a lot of the writing in Wolf Winter, a very simplistic, almost cold style of prose. It eventually grew on me, though was jarring after the last few books I read, which were all very purple. My favorite by far was the contrast between the simple sentences (he did this, he did this, then he did this) and the fanciful narrative of the dreams. By doing this, Jerlach exemplified the contrast between the unnamed lighthouse keeper's rather mundane regular routine and the dreams without ever telling us. 

I mean, there is some flaws. For one, the book feels self-published. I don't like self-published books because I believe strongly in the importance of an editor. It's not self-published and it is well-edited, but still. Just a pet peeve of mine. Also, the word "somnambulist" or some variation of the word appeared in the text too many times. Of course, these flaws are all just little things that bug me, and YMMV.

I would go more into the plot, but I went into this book mostly blind and ended up enjoying it more for it. This is one of those books best discovered and interpreted by oneself. So pick this one up one night, maybe put Space Oddity on in the background, and enjoy your trip in the mind of Enoch Soule.

8-8.5 out of 10

Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

Anya could really use a friend. But her new BFF isn't kidding about the "Forever" part.

Of all the things Anya expected to find at the bottom of an old well, a new friend was not one of them. Especially not a new friend who’s been dead for a century.

Falling down a well is bad enough, but Anya's normal life might actually be worse. She's embarrassed by her family, self-conscious about her body, and she's pretty much given up on fitting in at school. A new friend—even a ghost—is just what she needs.

Or so she thinks. Spooky, sardonic, and secretly sincere, Anya's Ghost is a wonderfully entertaining debut from author/artist Vera Brosgol. 

So, remember how I said I didn't really like graphic novels? Well, I still don't, but I might pick one up if it appeals to me enough. It's like fantasy, I don't really like it, but if one leaps out at me I'll put aside my prejudices for long enough to read it. Hey, that's how I discovered some of my favorite books, like The Road or Marina or the Six of Crows duology. 

So I picked up Anya's Ghost because it seemed like a really sweet graphic novel with some very mild horror elements about a girl from a Russian immigrant family who wanted to fit in despite everything and ends up meeting a ghost. As I strongly believe that Ghosts R Great, as well as my interest in Russian culture, I knew I had to read this book. 

I suppose, despite the ages of the characters, that it's middle grade, though I can't really tell with graphic novels. But the depth, or lack thereof, was right along the same level I've come to expect from middle grade works and thus I file it under middle grade. Fight me.

First, the negative. It had the same problem as the other graphic novels I read this month in that it seemed to be lacking depth, and felt rushed, leaving me wanting more from Anya and her story. The ghost thing, as well as the crush thing, felt like the author was really rushing to resolve that storyline. It's rare that I say this, but this book could be at least 100 pages longer. In fact, after finishing, I went on Goodreads, hoping for a sequel. I wanted more of Anya and her world and her friendship with Siobhan. Heck, I'd be fine with a webcomic- in fact, if she hadn't resolved the ghost storyline, this book idea would make a really freaking cute slice-of-life webcomic along the same lines as Sandra and Woo, or a more dramatic comedy like that one about the English school and the forest whose title I can't think of at the moment (sorry, it's been like 3 or 4 years since my webcomic phase- I stopped reading them when I started reading novels again). I mean, I guess that isn't a negative, since that means I liked the book enough to want more.

Because I did. I liked the message Brosgol was trying to get at. I liked the characters, and thought each one had a ton of potential. I loved Anya's family, and how even though she was embarrassed by them and how they tried to cling on to their old traditions while still assimilating to some degree, she still loved them- especially her brother, Sasha, who was your typical pain in the ass but loveable little brother, and her mother who, sure, was a little embarrassing but worked really hard to give her daughter a private school education- albeit a bad one. And I did love how Anya's crush's girlfriend wasn't some generic bitchy blonde mean girl, but was actually a really nice person. She reminded me of a girl I knew in high school- blond, beautiful, athletic, good grades, gifted singer, etc etc but also one of the nicest girls I knew. I think people like that exist just to make the rest of us feel bad.

So I guess my final thought is that this book is one of the best graphic novels I've read. Which I suppose isn't saying much, but still. Also, if I could, I'd commission Brosgol to write a webcomic based on Anya's Ghost. I suppose what this is means is that, while I don't love speculative fiction in real books, it's a lot better in graphic novels. Maybe it's because of the shorter length or the pretty illustrations, but if I must read speculative fiction in the future, especially paranormal or fantasy, I'd love it to be in graphic novel form. I think I'd pay good money to see books like Six of Crows or Marina (please God make that happen!) in graphic novel format. Not The Road though. I don't think that one would work too well.

7.5-8 out of 10

Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier Review + A Mini Review of Dare to Disappoint by Ozge Samanci

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick. Cat isn't happy about leaving her friends for Bahía de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbor lets them in on a secret: There are ghosts in Bahía de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister's sake - and her own. 

I'm not really a graphic novel fan. As much as I love art and animation and all that, graphic novels never really caught my eye. Maybe it's because graphic novel art reminds me a lot of the new Cartoon Network art, which is kind of unappealing to me. Also, a lot of graphic novels just kind of blend together and none of them stand out when I browse for books at my local library. 

But this month I read not one but two graphic novels. And I remembered another reason why I don't usually read graphic novels, but I'll get to that in a second. This is the first, which I picked up on a whim and also because, as I think I mentioned before, I really enjoy Raina Telgemeier's work. She's one of the few middle grade writers who have managed to hold my interest, and I find her art style unique and pleasant for a graphic novel. I especially like her memoirs, though I did also enjoy Drama, her first middle grade straight up novel. 

So with all that in mind I picked up Ghosts. I was intrigued by this book when it first came out in the September of last year, but then got distracted by other books that came out around that time, like A Gentleman in Moscow and Crooked Kingdom. I liked the fact that it was about a little girl with cystic fibrosis and her older sister dealing with the very real possibility that her sister will not live very long. I've never read a book that had a girl with cystic fibrosis in it, though I was aware of its existence, and really liked that representation. I also liked the Mexican cultural elements. Latin, especially Mexican, culture is so vibrant and colorful and quite interesting. Also, the Day of the Dead is easily one of the most interesting holidays out there, and I was a little in love with the Northern California town she created to set her story in- I'd never live in California, but if I had to, it'd be to there. Or San Francisco. Either one. 

That being said, my favorite part was the illustrations. I loved Telgemeier's take on ghosts. I admit, I expected a more realistic style of drawing ghosts and was really happy when I saw those cute little things. I also really liked her character designs and how she goes to extra lengths to make sure that all of her characters, even the background ones, are visually interesting and unique. 

Of course, this book does have flaws. It is a middle grade book, and a graphic novel, so the emotions don't reach as deep as they could have been. The characters aren't as developed as they could have been, and their development was pretty instantaneous. Both of these are common problems I have with graphic novels- I find that they're usually pretty short, and as such are pretty surface level in terms of depth. Often I leave them wanting more. 

But overall, I did enjoy this book, about as much I can enjoy a middle grade graphic novel. Also, ghosts. I really love ghosts. I'm tempted to pick up Anya's Ghost now because of this book. Recommended for any middle grade reader, graphic novel lover or not.

7.5 out of 10

And now, a mini review of Dare to Disappoint by Ozge Samanci

Growing up on the Aegean Coast, Ozge loved the sea and imagined a life of adventure while her parents and society demanded predictability. Her dad expected Ozge, like her sister, to become an engineer. She tried to hear her own voice over his and the religious and militaristic tensions of Turkey and the conflicts between secularism and fundamentalism. Could she be a scuba diver like Jacques Cousteau? A stage actress? Would it be possible to please everyone including herself?

In her unpredictable and funny graphic memoir, Ozge recounts her story using inventive collages, weaving together images of the sea, politics, science, and friendship. 

Not crazy about this book. It had a lot of the same problems as Ghosts, but with a storyline that endeared me less and with what seemed like much less heart. I felt like Samanci just wrote this book because of the success of books along the same lines as this, like Persopolis (haven't read that one, and honestly, it doesn't really appeal much to me). 

I also felt that Samanci didn't really know where she was going with this book. Did she want to write a book about her father's pressure on her, fundamental Islam, a picture of Turkey at the time, what? The book felt as confused as Turkey did during the 80s. The lack of her telling us any time periods confused me, and made this not the best book for someone interested in a history of modern Turkey. Perhaps that's intentional, to mimic her feelings about what she should do with her life, but I don't know.

So what did I like? It was easy to read- I read the whole thing in one sitting without even checking it out because I was tired of my other book- and the mixed media elements were interesting even if it did add to the confused, jumbled together nature of the book. Some parts were actually pretty funny, but other times her jokes missed the mark a bit. My favorite parts were at the beginning of the book, when she talked about her experiences in primary school- the book kind of lost me as she entered her teenage years.

But the art style was mostly unpleasant and the ending felt unfinished and I left this book feeling very meh. I suppose if I want to read a book about Middle Eastern culture (I'm referring to the Middle East more as a cultural construct, not a geographical one in this context, because I know that Turkey isn't part of the Middle East geographically and people get all butthurt about it), I'd pick up something by Khaled Hosseini. His books are longer, and they lack the pictures, but his characters and portrayals of their situations are unmatched. Adore his stuff.

5-5.5 out of 10 

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor Review

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS BELOW

“Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.”- Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Laini Taylor 

Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is the book we can probably thank for that weird-ass angel trend in YA in the early 2010s. While it is true that Becca Fitzpatrick's Hush, Hush, and Lauren Kate's Fallen serieses were published in 2009 and over by 2012, I have noticed an uptick in angel books published in late 2011, early 2012. So I blame this book. It was right at the end of the Paranormal Romance empire; the Twilight movie series was coming to a close, and Dystopian popularity was picking up steam with the Hunger Games movies and Divergent. Interesting comparisons can probably be drawn between the Christianization of Rome right near the end of the Empire and the angel trend being near the end of the mainstream popularity of paranormal romance, but alas, not enough time or inclination on my part. Also, I'm not really that versed in the genre. In fact, this is the first paranormal romance I read, so Daughter of Smoke and Bone gets the dubious honor of that. I don't think I'll be running out to the bookstore eager to pick up any more, or even to finish the trilogy. 

I don't know whether I like the title or it reminds me of a barbecue place. The other two are much better. Besides the title, the first thing that captured my attention was the pretty writing. And yes, it's absolutely gorgeous and not at all like a YA novel in the same way Six of Crows was. Teenaged characters, teenaged plot line, but adult writing. Ever since the colossal disappointment that was The Night Circus, though, I've been suspicious of pretty writing. This book was like a beautiful woman with an empty head. I say that because Taylor attempts to cover serious flaws, like her main character not having a real personality, with luscious descriptions and expertly worded quotes. The entire time I was reading, I kept thinking "it's a good thing you're pretty, because otherwise I would have DNFed you so hard right now." 

Truth be told, I was getting pretty bored with it anyway. Mostly because Karou has the illusion of having a personality. I have a very simple litmus test for telling whether or not a character has an actual personality- I ask myself two questions: who are they, what do they want. At around 70 pages in, I asked myself both questions- ample enough time to get to know our heroine, no? Sure, maybe not her backstory, that's expected, but who she is. Well, we know she's a gifted artist. She likes languages. She was raised by demons. She's fairly witty- the only trait that isn't told to us outright; Taylor must think we the readers are idiots- apparently she's pretty badass, and of course, in the grand tradition of romance novel heroines, she's a possessor of out of this world beauty. You'll notice that none of these traits are negative, and I'll get there. But first we must ask: what does she want? All together now: LOVE! Fairly human need, one that I don't necessarily have a problem with; we all crave love or at the very least understanding, as George Orwell claims in 1984. I know I do. Sadly, I'm not much interested in reading about the pursuit of love over the course of a 400-something page novel, especially due to what we'll find out later. So Karou's love quest doesn't really endear me to her and frankly just made me frightened as to where this book is going.

As I mentioned before, she has almost no negative character traits, except for some informed ones, like her supposed vanity or pettiness. We do get a bit of pettiness when she uses her wishing beads to make her ex itch during a life drawing class, but other than that she's pretty flawless. I can't root for heroines like that. She's not what I would consider a Strong Female Character. Strong Female Characters I would reserve for protagonists like Katniss, who is a tough, compassionate badass, but she also has many negative traits, like her wrath or her inherent selfishness. I can root for her because of that. Karou is clearly set up to be some perfect spectacle of womanhood, and her perfection is supposed to be some sign of her origin, but there's a reason that stories typically star humans and angels are reserved for side characters or love interests. We cannot connect to flawless beings. 

Of course, Karou is also "not whole". Tragic. Nothing a beautiful boy can't fix. Enter Angel Boy. He has a real name, but I refuse to type it. So Angel Boy it is. He is mysteriously drawn to the otherworldly beauty that is our MC. And that was where any and all hope I had for this plot line died. I didn't know it was going to be a romance. The summary lied to me, as well as the genre classifications. Should have listened to Goodreads. Anyway, Angel Boy is exactly what it says on the tin. An angel who happens to be part of the penis sex. Actually, he's not really an angel. I don't know where Taylor is getting this from, but her angels are merciless, cold hearted beings. Like sociopaths. Or vampires. Again, no idea where she got this from. Angels by definition are guardians, full of kindness and, yes, mercy for humanity. Maybe not avenging angels, but I doubt it. I also never got this idea of taking something that has as intense a religious connotation as angels and secularizing them. Angels have always had a deep religious connection, from Zoroastrianism to the Abrahamic religions- Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. In all four religions, they have had the same role and connection to God. Frankly, it can also be seen as offensive since this book takes something as intensely religious, something that cannot exist without God, and turns it into something secular, even to the point of decrying religion. Taylor should have created her own monsters or angel-like creatures if she wanted to do that.

Anyway, back to the review. Angel Boy is a tormented soul. Perfect. He's also pretty brood-y and enjoys some light stalking activities, as well as attempting to kill his One True Love. We find out that they're essentially meant to be together. Which is great for Taylor, since she doesn't have to show them falling in love. It's like a romance novel without the main plot, though I assume this is a commonplace in most paranormal romance novels since they like to disguise themselves with seductive plotlines to act like they're better than all those other romance novels. Good thing he's devastatingly handsome. Apparently, he even wears eyeliner, which made me flip to the publication date to see if it was 2005. And yes, I was right, any interesting storyline flew out the window for some good old fashioned paranormal romance. It's like Twilight, except with Prague and angels. 

Which reminds me, I wish there was more Prague. It's one of my wish list cities, but it seems like Taylor just chose Prague because it was a pretty, historic city. With the exception of a few admittingly enchanting descriptions she does nothing else with the setting she chose. She could have researched Bohemian mythology or done so much with Czech culture but she didn't. I hate wasted settings. 

There's some other issues I have with this book, like way too much exposition and overly confusing storyline but this review is long enough and I don't feel like going into it. Point is, I didn't like this book. Maybe you will, but I didn't. If you loved Twilight, go for it. If not, well, can't say I didn't warn you.

3.5-4 out of 10

To Be Continued...

Never