Tag: YA Fiction

YA Contemporary Fiction, YA romance

My Review: To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before (To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before #1): by Jenny Han

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Publish Date: April 14th, 2014
Number of Pages: 355 Pages
Publisher: Simon Schuster Children’s Publishing
Genre(s): Teen Fiction, Contemporary Romance

Total Star Rating: 3.5 Stars

Yes…I am a part of the bandwagon with this franchise after it had gained some major popularity becoming a Netflix original movie. I both watched and enjoyed the dynamics of the film, and the cast of characters were fun to watch, so knowing that the book was probably better–like it usually is–I decided to give it a shot.

While it’s not action packed and adventurous like The Hunger Games, or plenty of other popular YA/Teen series, it’s still enjoyable with a more realistic, simple coming-of-age approach that talks about everyday themes like family, first love, the joys and sorrows of high school, and maybe writing fake letters to anyone you’ve had feelings for, only for them to somehow get all sent out, thus making it seem like your life is over…totally normal, right?

If anyone reading this is friends with me and sees what I read based off my other reviews and my “Read” shelf on Goodreads: it’s pretty obvious I like contemporary romance if not Fantasy. Not that I need to justify or defend what I like to read because no one should, I’m a hopeless romantic at heart and I want it for myself one day so I enjoy reading about it, and Lara Jean and Peter have an engaging dynamic for me. Lara is the quiet, preppy girl who keeps her head down in the halls and bakes on weekends instead of partying, and while Peter is the typical popular jock who runs the school, I do enjoy reading his interactions with Lara Jean and how he still tries to be the cool, cocky jock, but stops his act whenever he’s alone with her and shows a side of him that no one else has ever seen before. I get warm inside about that shit. They have a relationship where I sincerely hope it works out in the end.

What It’s About:

Lara Jean has never openly admitted any of her crushes, but instead wrote each boy a letter about how she felt, then sealed it, and hid it in a box under her bed to never see the light of day ever again…

All that goes down the toilet when one day Lara Jean discovers that somehow her secret box of letters has been mailed out, causing all her crushes from her past to confront her about the letters: her first kiss, the boy from summer camp, even her sister’s ex-boyfriend, Josh.

As she learns to deal with her past loves face to face, Lara Jean discovers that something good may come out of these letters after all…

What I Liked:

  1. The “Fake Relationship” Trope! So a big part of the story was how one of the boys LJ had a serious crush on was actually her older sister’s boyfriend, Josh. He’s literally the boy next door to her, but LJ decides to pretend to already be in a relationship instead of dealing with that confrontation. She makes a deal with the popular Peter Kavinsky to “fake-date” as it turns out he’s trying to get over his ex too, Jen, and Peter was a recipient of one of LJ’s letters anyways. It’s a cute setup, and the fake-relationships-to-make-someone-else-jealous-but-ends-up-falling-for-pretend-bae is a familiar trope that I never get tired of! It just leads to some really hilarious moments throughout the story, some awkward instances of almost getting caught, and the thrill of will others find out about it?
  2. The Theme of the Importance of Family! One very important theme in the book is family. Laura Jean is incredibly family-centric and it’s probably the most important thing in her life. She loves her older sister, Margo, and is devastated when she leaves to go to college overseas. She adores her younger sister, Kitty, even though her childish antics and moodiness gets on her nerves, and is always looking out for her father and making sure everything within their house runs smoothly. Their dynamic is one of healing because their mom passed away and it’s obvious it was a big shock to everyone, and all have been affected in different ways.
  3. It’s Light, Easy, Fun Reading! TATBILB is just a light, fluffy, and a totally different change of pace from the angsty, heavier material I also read with the Fantasy genre and lately, Paranormal Romance. This book is what some call a total “beach read” as in it’s easy to follow along and constantly toss that bookmark inside, and come back to later without having to worry about trying to remember a thousand tiny details.

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. Leaves On A Cliffhanger…The ending just ends so abruptly, and was so unsatisfying compared to the pacing of the whole rest of the book. To a degree, I get it: you need to keep the series going and have people want to keep reading on for sales and all that, but I still felt like it could’ve ended differently and not feel so out of the blue and sudden.
  2. Laura Jean Doesn’t Develop…LJ is a total Mary Sue character in my opinion. she is seemingly perfect by being the perfect daughter who helps around the house, bakes on the weekends instead of going out to parties and getting drunk. Part of me gets it though…she is pretty innocent and has little life experience other than being the middle born child with an older sister who has a textbook type-A personality. Either way, it just seems like her interests and what drives her in the story seems really boy-obsessed and shallow, and by the end of the book, it doesn’t feel like she really learns all that much.

Conclusion:

I can see why the All The Boys I’ve Loved Before franchise has become so popular with the younger audiences in YA fiction: it’s fun, it’s light, it’s romantic and is pretty relatable with the characters and the inner turmoil and constant worry that goes through the lead character’s mind. I feel like there were plenty of instances within this book that a lot of teenage girls can relate to, and find comfort in this popular contemporary fiction trilogy.

I recommend this title to anyone who enjoys the “Fake Relationship” romance trope that continues to sweep across the contemporary romance genre, and compared to what I’ve read in the past, I feel like anyone who likes Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins, or a novel I’ve reviewed on here: Again, but Better by Christine Riccio would enjoy this title.

It’s not anything deep or substantial in terms of literature, but it’s still just a light, fun read to enjoy if you’re looking for a change of pace and wanted to read deeper into the popular Netflix original movie.

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

YA Fantasy

My Review: Truthwitch (Witchlands #1): by Susan Dennard

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Publish Date: January 5th, 2016
Number of Pages: 415 Pages
Publisher: Tor Teens
Genre(s): YA Fantasy

Total Star Rating: 3.75 Stars

A YA-Fantasy title with major potential!

It seems like there are so, so, so, so, so, so, so many fantasy-genre titles that have come out over the last couple of years, and I’m happy about it, but at the same time it makes me ask myself: which ones are actually worth reading?

It’s a question that’s been seriously stressing me out lately, and I’ll be honest, there are plenty of titles that I’m sure are just recycled spin offs of others and are filled with a lot of the same themes, character-arcs, settings, etc. Even the blurbs mesh together and sound the same at this point, and characters are only memorable if I have no idea how to even pronounce their name!

Don’t even get me started on how the titles have a variation of any of these words in no particular order: Throne, Sword, Glass, Storm, Glass, War, Thorn, Rose, Crown, Queen, Flame, Shadow, etc…

This title was one that I’d really questioned, and was really hesitant to open. The blurb didn’t blow me away, and everything just sounded unoriginal and just recycled material I’d read in other titles already. It’s Goodreads score was decent enough, and Sarah J. Maas hyped it up (before her and the author had a huge, mysterious falling out), plus I started seeing awesome fanart on Pinterest and Instagram, so I slowly warmed up to the book and decided fuck it, I’d give it a chance.

It was good, but not great. It has a lot of major potential, that is for sure, but nothing really amazed me or caused me to want to stay up until 4 am on a work night because I needed answers and not sleep. I say that with a grain of salt because I also have to take into account about trying to judge a series based off just the first books. I mean…look at any first book of a series you love, then think about either the latest or the final book if it’s finished. Was the first book absolutely eye-opening? did it make you excited? were the characters as amazing then as they are when it’s over? Odds are no, you read on and grew with the story as it’d developed and thats what made you love the book/series. Truthwitch wasn’t the most amazing book I’d read, but I can say I liked it well enough to care what happens next and want to read the next title someday!

One thing I appreciated about the author’s work is how she’d made sure to make her cast of characters incredibly diverse. This was as much for me to reference back to as well as anyone who wants to (feel free to bookmark the page), but here’s a rundown of the ethnic backgrounds of the main empires of the storyline and what they’d match up to in contemporary times:

Nomatsi: Eastern Asia

Nubrevna: Mediterranean/ Greek/ Spanish

Cartorra/ Dalmotti: Austrian/ Venetian

Marstoki: Mixed Races of darker skin, eyes, and hair

The author goes into detail about all this HERE on her Tumblr page for anyone who wants to look for themselves!

And now, onto the story!

What It’s About:

Map of the world of the Witchlands, image courtesy of the Witchlands wiki page

Truthwitch takes place in a world known as the Witchlands–seriously–and is ruled by three empires: Marstok, Dalmotti, and Cartorra. There are regular people, but there are also those with special abilities that put them in a class all their own. For the past 20 years, the three empires had been involved in a truce to not go to war, but times almost up, and tensions have risen to their boiling points, and not everyone may be renewing the contract.

The story revolves around two young women, Safi and Iseult, who come from different backgrounds, but had become best friends through training under the same mentor who’d helped them master both their special abilities.

Safi: blonde, tan, hot-headed, and of course beautiful, is a Truthwitch – someone who can sense if someone is lying, and it’s a power that is an extremely rare gift, which makes her extremely sought after by many powerful forces.

Iseult: pale, narrowed eyes, smart and strategic, calm and collected, and dark hair is a Threadwitch – someone who see’s invisible ties like string that bind those closest to her, meaning she knows where they are and what they feel.

They both fight for the chance to earn a simple and free life away from all the politics, the overpowering rule, but with war threatening to erupt, plans are quickly extinguished. The two of them find themselves working with Prince Merik–A Windwitch and ship’s captain– as they travel to foreign lands and see for themselves the world they’d only begun to understand. Meanwhile, a vengeful Bloodwitch –Aeduan–hunts each of them to try and return Safi to powerful rulers who want nothing more than to use her as a weapon!

What I Liked:

  1. The Various Point-Of-Views! I’m always a big fan of these kinds of fantasy novels, it’s like you’re getting multiple mini stories in one big book! I love when they intertwine and events from one point of view can become a big plot point for another point of view later on in the series. Safi, Iseult, Merik, and Aeduan were all the different perspectives of this story, and I personally liked Safi and Aeduan the most. Safi was a little clichéd, but I like her spunk and her dynamic with Iseult was fun to read. Merik seemed too moody and annoyingly angsty most of the time despite how I did like how everything he did was for the welfare of his kingdom and his people. Iseult is a great character, but I found her storyline to be a little lacking since she was injured in a bed for a good chunk of time, hopefully she gets more time to shine in the next title!
  2. The Theme of Female Friendship! It’s a major theme of the book, and something that anyone can enjoy if they’re fans of Fantasy, or fiction in general. It’s something we see surprisingly little of, where friendship is a theme or main focus of the overall story. Sure, it’s there in plenty of titles, but it doesn’t get as much attention. It would be cool if it’d possibly be an LGBT F/F relationship, but there are other titles out there that include that too, so I’m good with platonic friendship!
  3. The Diverse Cast! The author made it a point to not white-wash her cast, and instead made sure to make sure about 80%–my own estimate–are POC.
  4. Aeduan! He’s by far my favorite character of the book! He’s a Bloodwitch and a Carewan monk, and has an air of mystery to him that I liked. He’s technically a villain, but will probably have a similar arc to Magnus Damora from Falling Kingdoms and go from villain to anti-hero. Sure, he seems like an Assassin’s Creed knockoff with his white cloak and the fact that he’s a hired assassin, he still has some major potential to be an incredibly memorable character in this whole series!

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. The Insta-Love…Well, it wasn’t outright, but it was obvious that something shifted between Merik and Safi the instant they’d met, and then danced together at a ball. The way the author wrote it was similar to a storm out at sea, making it sound like it was this epic thing with sweeping winds, harsh thunder, dark clouds, and the earth shaking, and even if the characters themselves didn’t realize their feelings for each other, it was an insta-love for us as the readers…ugh.
  2. Off To A Slow Beginning…After the initial setup at the beginning, the book felt slow to me. It was hard for me to get fully engaged in the story until after the halfway point. It was there that I’d gotten more attached to the characters and felt like the story had gotten more interesting.

Conclusion:

Overall, I can honestly say this novel has a lot of potential. It’s nothing too spectacular or mind-blowing, but I also say that knowing that nowadays, it’s incredibly difficult to be able to sum up a series from just the first book. I remember the first book of a lot of series I consider my favorites: both the Throne of Glass and even Harry Potter first books left me feeling like there was more to be desired, and look how they turned out…two of the most popular YA fantasy series of all time.

Truthwitch leaves you just curious enough to want to read on and see what may possible happen next. It’s filled with imagery and themes that are both familiar and somewhat new as well, and while I felt I wasn’t fully engaged for a good chunk of it, the positive definitely outweighs the negative.

I recommend this title to anyone who enjoy strong heroine-centric YA fantasy titles written by authors like Sarah J. Maas (who has an interesting past with this author), Kristin Cashore, Victoria Aveyard, Richelle Mead, Tamora Pierce, and Cassandra Clare (But I can at least say the writing is better than some of these names mentioned). Truthwitch is filled with adventure, action, complex and engaging relationships between it’s main cast of characters, and like I said earlier, the promise of more; let’s hope this series continues to improve as it develops!

Thanks For Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

Mystery/Thriller, YA Contemporary Fiction

My Review: Two Can Keep a Secret: by Karen McManus

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Publish Date: January 8th, 2019
Number of Pages: 329 Pages
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Genre(s): YA Mystery, Suspense/Thriller

Total Star Rating: 2 Stars

Three may keep a secret if two of them are dead.”

– Benjamin Franklin

Okay lesbehonest…who else is shook that the quote we hear so much now is actually missing someone from the original quote? Maybe one of them really is dead?…

One thing we do know is that secrets never fully stay buried for long, they always have a way of revealing themselves, whether or not we want them to be or not. Like insects, they like to find a way to sneak through the cracks and infest themselves…But I can’t lie; they sure do make things interesting…

When I’d read Karen McManus’s debut novel, One of Us is Lying (see my other book review by clicking the link in the text), I was kind of impressed that someone had stepped up to give YA readers something different, which was a Mystery/Thriller genre title. The section is filled to the brim on either Contemporary Romance or Fantasy (usually with romance too), and I’ve got to admit, they all are starting to bleed together…they’re just becoming spinoffs of each other, and less and less titles are beginning to feel original. One of Us is Lying felt different! It was something semi new to the table, and sure, it had the stereotypical characters that we’d all seen before…but that was only a base that she profusely deviated from in a fun and entertaining fashion! They developed and changed and completely turned around on their original expectations and it was enjoyable to grow with them as I read the mystery surrounding their story!

I’ve heard that while the debut novel of an author can be a huge success, it’s the sophomore novel that can be more of a challenge in terms of a good story or whether the author learned from their first and can keep up the momentum, but I admit that the former may be called into question because I regret to inform you guys that I wasn’t all that impressed with this title. The author’s craft continues to improve, there’s no doubt about that, but this book just wasn’t as much fun as her previous work for me. It was unpredictable and left me guessing who was behind it, but it never got me too excited or fully invested.

To sum it all up: it wasn’t terrible, but it was just an okay read.

It explores the idea of a seemingly pristine town that is riddled with a violent and mysterious history, and is infected with many dark secrets underneath the surface. It’s people on the outside appear darn-near perfect, but we all know things are never as they seem.

What It’s About:

When their mother is sent to rehab after a brutal car accident, Ellery and her twin Ezra are sent to live with their grandmother in the town that their mother grew up in but has the dark history of not one, but two missing girls were mysteriously murdered: Echo Ridge. The twins are used to not drawing too much attention to themselves along with taking care of each other with because of their troubled mother, but they learn the night they get into town that they’re connected to the towns troubled and murky history more than they’d ever expected.

Haunted by the past, their grandmother reveals to them one of the murdered girls was actually their mother’s twin sister, the aunt they never got to meet. Ellery becomes engrossed into what really happened all those years ago, and as a self-professed true crime aficionado, she’s up to the case and starts digging, despite not entirely sure she’ll like what she finds.

But like secrets, past events never stay fully buried, and the very night they arrive and learn the startling family reveal, a body is discovered in the road. A beloved teacher is found dead after a hit and run with no known suspect. More mysterious occurrences begin to happen, and threatening notes are found all over town, threatening the girls on the Homecoming Court and that they will all soon be dead. It’s exactly like what happened with the other girls many years prior, and the town is put into a terrified uproar over the past coming back to haunt them, history doomed to repeat itself.

To make matters worse, before anyone can do anything about it, a girl does go missing.

Ellery must work faster than ever to save a fellow classmate, and must work with local fellow high school student, Malcom (who’s family also has a bad history involved with the murders), in order to solve the mystery and rid the town of a possible killer on the loose.

What I liked:

  1. It’s Unpredictable! The author can really craft a great mystery, anyone who reads her novels I hope can see that! She expertly weaves red herrings, scapegoats, and other subplots together in order to keep you guessing and not have a clue as to who the killer could possibly be. I admit I had no idea who it was until the climactic final showdown.
  2. Great Minority Representation! The main character is Latina with a gay male twin, and there’s two asian side characters with one of them being bisexual! Instead of sticking with stereotypical characters as a basis for her main cast, Karen mixed it up and made the characters for this title much more diverse, which is a huge plus for the YA market. If not Game of Thrones-esque Fantasy, representation has been a huge selling point for contemporary titles, which is so great to see in recent years!
  3. The Final Line of the Book! The only thing that made me feel something was the very final line of the book as it left quite a chilling impression. It was a great way to end a suspense/mystery!

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. Title Sounds Like A Sequel…I feel like it’s confusing that this was titled Two Can Keep a Secret when her first novel was titled One of Us Is Lying, and yet they’re completely unrelated to each other. This isn’t the sequel even though the title suggests otherwise; it’s a complete standalone…Something about that feels disappointing to me.
  2. There’s Less Points of View…One aspect of One of Us Is Lying that I loved was how we heard from four different characters as you read that book. I love to get inside the minds of completely different characters and see how they operate with a different perspective, but we only got two characters for this title, much to my disappointment. I was also bummed that among the voices we heard the most of, none of the cast really stuck with me. They were fine, but nothing too special or memorable.
  3. This Was Too Character Driven…It sounds odd for a mystery, but a lot of the novel moves based off the characters and how they react to stuff that happens, which is what made this a slower read than I liked. I know it contradicts what I usually say about that style of story, but I think a murder mystery shouldn’t be so character driven. What’s also lacking is that the characters didn’t really develop or change all that much as time went on. They just learned more secrets and reacted to them.

Conclusion:

It wasn’t a terrible book by any means, but I must say that for me, it was a lackluster sophomore murder mystery novel. Other readers, maybe younger and/or newer ones, can immensely enjoy this title. I blame the personal hype I gave this book from how much I did enjoy her first book, along with how many other books I’ve read which has raised my standards over the years. I recommend this title to anyone who’s a fan of teen thriller TV shows Riverdale and Pretty Little Liars (Karen can certainly write content better than both of those comparisons)!

Luckily, Karen has shared on her Twitter that she will have 2 books come out in 2020, including the actual sequel to OOUIL, One of Us is Next, which is expected to come out January 7th, 2020! I can say I’m still a fan of hers, so ya know I will check her other titles out and see what she comes up with next. Her craft can only go up from here!

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

Horror, Mystery/Thriller, YA Contemporary Fiction

My Review: Project 17: by Laurie Faria Stolarz

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Publish Date: December 18th, 2007
Number of Pages: 248 Pages
Publisher: Hyperion
Genre(s): Young Adult, Paranormal, Mystery, Horror

Total Star Rating: 3.25 Stars

Who hasn’t had the urge to break into an old building that’s probably haunted? Imagine talking this over with your friends:

Let’s go film a movie, make some creepy scenes, put the hot girl right in the main shot to get views, and maybe ignore those footsteps we keep hearing, the shadows that keep moving, or maybe the bloody graffiti that spelled “GET OUT” back there…nothing can go wrong, right?

So I will be honest, I have not read this book in quite some time. In fact, the last time I ever opened the pages was probably 2009-2010, and even then it was purely for nostalgia, because this book holds a special place in my heart. As cheesy as it sounds, it was a key that opened up a time of my life that I look back on rather fondly. You’re really interested and want to hear the story???

I know you don’t, but screw it, here it goes:

It’s 8th grade, and me and my classmates get into groups for a big english project in making a short film. There’s groups of 5-6 students, and one of my partners, Shelby, introduced this book to our group when we were still figuring out what to do. None of us had ever read it, but it inspired us to make our own version of it, which was basically a cheap, god-awful Blair Witch Project knockoff with no plot other than random kids walking a dark hallway and things pop out and scare the crap out of them. I can say though, we got creative and ripped a doll’s head off, hung it by a string and shined a strobe light on with a creepy recording of a girl saying “Baby Debbie come to play, Baby Debbie come to DIE,” the last word going demonically low, which got quite a few laughs from the classmates that watched it.

The point of this story is what it did, which was surround me with a group of girls: Vy, Jenna, Melodi, Shelby and Rachel; it had us hang out a lot outside of school, and helped make some great memories that made me feel like I’d found a small group of actual friends for the first time in my life. Unfortunately, I lost contact with pretty much all of them thanks to high school and then moving away for college, but It was still one of the best parts of my life! Thanks girls! I doubt you’ll ever read this, but from the bottom of my heart and to quote Fall Out Boy, Thanks for the memories!

I apologize to everyone else; there was just a lot of backstory with this book as it’s got a lot of sentimental value to me, but now onto this actual book itself!

What It’s About:

This story is about Danvers State Hospital, an abandoned insane asylum atop Hathorne Hill just off the edge of Boston. It was rumored that the lobotomy was created there, and hundreds of unmarked graves littered the grounds of those that perished away within the cold, hard walls; their spirits haunting the dark and ominous halls. The building is about to be torn down, and all the memories and restless souls lost forever.

This story is about six teenagers who make one last appearance before the building is demolished, and they all have their own reasons for being there:

Derik is the popular guy with the less-than-stellar reputation when it comes to girls, and has been an underachiever because he knows he’s pretty much trapped into taking over the family diner unless he makes something of himself past graduation. He falls upon a film competition with prize money; it may be his last chance at a better life.

Liza is the smart, gorgeous, unattainable overachiever who has perfect grades, her transcripts for college all spick and spam, shiny and perfect except for one thing…she never really did any extracurriculars. Colleges look to see how students get involved; it’s not just about good grades and test scores anymore; maybe a student film being made is her chance to beef up her resumé?

Mimi is a rebel, an outsider, someone who doesn’t belong, and has people look at her funny because she wears all black and has lots of makeup and piercings on her face. She tries to hide it, but she has a personal reason for wanting to get into Danvers before it’s demolition, and despite the company, she volunteers to join Derik’s project.

Chet is the class clown, can’t take anything seriously, and usually makes just about everything into a sexual innuendo, but if he has to go back to that house where his father hits him almost every night, he might just hit his breaking point…whats another night out of that house and away from his drunken father’s fists?

Greta and Tony are the theater nerds who don’t know the boundaries of PDA…They are looking for any chance to get their made-up crowns onscreen in some way, and this project that Derik has started may or may not be their ticket to fame…

They all come from different social circles, but they all come together and break into the abandoned hospital on the eve of its demolition and film their adventures. Maybe they’ll get a few souvenirs to bring home, make a fun movie, but things quickly take on a darker, twisted and more ominous tone as strange occurrences keep happening: cold spots in the basement, film and audio equipment malfunctioning, doors locking on themselves, and the feeling that they may not be alone…

Soon, they find themselves trapped in a deadly scavenger hunt as they unravel some of the terrible secrets this hospital had kept locked and hidden until now, and a mystery that surrounds a specific inmate and the importance of the number 17 that keeps showing up all over the place. Together, they will work together to try and help one lost soul hopefully find their way, and have the night change them all forever…

What I Liked:

  1. The Research Done About Danvers! So fun fact, but Danvers was actually a real place! It was an insane asylum that was fully constructed in 1874, opened in 1878, then eventually closed down in 1992. It was actually demolished like they talk about in the story, and was also the setting in the horror flick, Session 9, which filmed on the actual ruins of the building. I never watched it, and I hear it’s much more gruesome than this novel, but remains of the very few visual pieces that showcases the actual site of the hospital. The author really seemed to have done her research on the building and its tragic history, including its well…questionable methods of therapy, and implemented it incredibly well into her story. She touches on the horrific past of malpractice of the patients that were admitted to places like Danvers and plenty of others back in the day.
  2. “The Breakfast Club” Trope! Some could argue that it’s played out, boring, and overdone, but I always appreciate books that have a cast of characters that normally don’t interact with each other, but are somehow forced together by some sort of force or plot point, whether it be in after-school detention, or you know…illegally breaking into an abandoned asylum to make a short student film. The cast of characters are nothing original (The popular jock, the theater nerds, the clown, the princess, etc.) but they make for reading the book to be enjoyable while touching on the issues of rumors and reputation while trying to survive high school in a more modern setting than a John Hughes’ 80’s teen classic.
  3. The Mystery Around Christine! So while they explore the hospital (collecting files, souvenirs, graffiti from over the years, gathering footage, and even discover a bathtub with bars enclosed over the top), they discover the diary of one of the patients from many years ago, a young girl named Christine. Through the diary, the dark secrets of Danvers comes to light and the teens find themselves on a hunt through the whole hospital of finding out what happened to her and if they can possibly put her spirit to rest.
  4. It’s A Quick Read! This book is lighter in volume, so it’s a good choice for more beginner level readers, or someone who just needs a quick, fast read that’s somewhat entertaining. For the speedier readers, you may even be able to finish this book in one setting! The ending is also quite satisfying and ties everything together quite well, especially for Mimi.
Danvers State Hospital, circa 1893, image credit to owner

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. It’s Not Creepy Enough…If you’re looking for something to really scare the crap out of you, make you afraid to walk into any dark room or make you need to leave the light on while you sleep, this book is not for you…It’s pretty basic and safe in terms of violence, gore or any other sort of horror aspects. There are some creepy moments, sure, but nothing that really seems too shocking for someone who’d consider themselves a veteran of the horror genre.
  2. Too Much Plot Convenience…While I can excuse the cliché characters, one thing that irked me was how easy and convenient it was for the characters to find patient’s files, equipment, props, etc. especially when it was integral to the plot. Like, it felt so choreographed that important documents just happened to be lying around on the floor, conveniently waiting to be discovered by them when they popped into the room, and it had classified information towards the malpractice of the doctors and nurses… The building’s been closed for quite some time by the time they get there, shouldn’t the place be leached out by then? Or the Documents have been shredded or something?

Conclusion:

While it’s pretty basic in terms of horror and creepiness, it’s still a quick and fun read for someone who’s looking for something along the lines of creepy, paranormal fiction. The characters are nothing new or original, but they make for a familiar and funny little escape for those that’d open the pages and give this book a try. It’s a good starting point for those that hate to read, but still need something to read for whatever reason, like an easy book report. It’s not deep and meaningful, it’s just fun, and there’s nothing wrong with that!

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

Fancasts/Dreamcasts

My Fancast/Dreamcast: An Ember In The Ashes Series by Sabaa Tahir

nicholasjgoodsell
Image courtesy of Sabaa Tahir’s Instagram profile

In Sabaa Tahir’s debut YA Fantasy series, Laia is a young girl living in poverty under the Martial Rule of the Empire in a world reminiscent of Ancient Rome, and must become a spy for a covert rebellion group her parents were a part of in order to get answers and secrets from the most dangerous and cruel general in Serra, but discovers more than she could’ve ever imagined….

Elias, the son of the very same general and star pupil at military training camp, secretly wants a life of freedom and to run away from the scrutiny and expectations that have weighed him down for as long as he remembers, but unexpected events leads to a tournament where he must compete against his fellow classmates in order for a new emperor to be crowned puts everything on pause…

Meanwhile, dark forces are at work, and a malicious shadow known as the Nightbringer is developing a sinister plot that could mean the end of life as we know it…

Check out my review of book #1: An Ember in the Ashes – Click HERE

Check out my review of book #2: A Torch Against the Night – Click HERE

Check out my review of book #3: A Reaper at the Gates – Click HERE

Check out my review of book #4: A Sky Beyond the Storm – Click HERE

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Here’s my official Fancast/Dreamcast:

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Laia of Serra: Sophia Ali, or Shiva Negar

Sophia Ali, image courtesy of the actress’s IMDB profile
Shiva Negar, image courtesy of gemmamagazine.com

This one was a little harder to do because there aren’t a whole lot of well known, Middle-Eastern/Pakistani/Muslim actresses out there that I felt would be fitting of the role. However I did remember these two women; Sophia has been on the more recent seasons of Grey’s Anatomy playing a young intern, and Shiva was in American Assassin.

Elias Veturius: Eliran Biton, or Jorge Del Rio

Eliran Bitan, image courtesy of the model’s Instagram profile
Jorge Del Rio, credit to owner

Elias was incredibly hard to cast! A lot of other fancasts that I’ve looked at have made him caucasian, but I remember reading somewhere that Sabaa Tahir said he wasn’t. Toni Mahfud has been a popular choice to fancast him since, but for me, something about him just didn’t fit the bill. I found this guy on Instagram, found out he’s of Israeli descent, and so I thought he looked much more like what I imagined Elias to appear as. Jorge is another choice based off his hypnotic eyes, but he may not fit the ethnic background that Elias may fall under.

Helene Aguilla: Claire Holt

Image courtesy of glamaholic.com

I’ve loved her ever since her days as Original Vampire Rebekah Mikaelson in the CW’s The Vampire Diaries. Like Rebekah, Helene doesn’t seem like much more than an a spoiled, elitist brat, but develops into a strong, brave & admirable young woman, so I believe that Claire would successfully showcase that if they cast her into the role.

Cain: Paul Bettany

Image courtesy of starwars.com

Paul has basically been my go-to guy for casting in strange, otherworldly male roles. He’s a terrific actor, has a unique look to him, and has a soft, yet powerful presence like his role as Vision in Marvel’s Avengers movies, so I believe he’d be absolutely wonderful as the mysterious Augur, Cain.

Marcus Ferrar: Willy Monfret

Image courtesy of thatsmags.com

I also would’ve cast Jesse Williams possibly, but I always cast him into roles and he seemed a little too old to play Marcus, but this model (who is seen in several Nicki Minaj music videos) would also serve to play the egocentric, crazed, power-hungry antagonist, Marcus.

Darin (Laia’s Brother): Deniz Akdeniz

Image courtesy of the actor’s IMDB profile

I’ve seen this guy play Aladdin on ABC’s Once Upon A Time, he’s also been on Jane the Virgin, and Agents of the S.H.I.E.L.D. He’s got a look that reminds me of Darrin, and seems good at playing the older brother of our Heroine, Laia.

Avitas Harper: Sean Sarantos

Image courtesy of samuelmecham.com

Avitas Harper was also a hard one to cast; not too much is given to us as to what he looked like. Sean is known more in the fitness world than Hollywood, but this half korean/ half greek model has a perfect look I had in mind for Avitas Harper, since the character is of Eastern Asian descent, according to the author!

Afya Ara-Nur: Priyaka Chopra Jonas

Image courtesy of sawfirst.com

For some reason, I originally cast Angela Bassett as the role…I think I was riding a high from her iconic-ness from American Horror Story, but after looking into it and realizing that she didn’t look anything like the role, and was way too old to play this Tribal-woman! I thought Priya would be able to harness the power that Afya possesses as being the leader of the tribe that takes in Elias and Laia in the second title, A Torch Against the Night.

Keris Veturius (The Commandant): Cate Blanchett

Image courtesy of GQ Magazine

I mean…do I really have to explain myself with this one?

Keenan: Ken Bek

Image courtesy of the model’s Instagram profile

There aren’t a whole lot of ginger men in Hollywood, at least younger ones. Most people would probably cast Eddie Redmayne or Sam Claflin, but neither felt right for this role. He’s not an actor, but this male model has a bit of danger in his eyes, a bit of swagger that I imagine Keenan had as he prowled the streets of Serra in search of causing a little chaos as he helps the rebellion cause.

Izzi: Scarlett Leithold

Image courtesy of fashionmodeldirectory.com

This model has what I imagine the similar features as our kitchen maid, Izzi. There’s no eyepatch, but she has young features, is absolutely gorgeous but not too prominent about it, and has a little more on an innocent vibe than other young blonde actresses that I could find.

Cook: Bahar Soomekh

Image courtesy of the actress’s IMDB profile

So the cook is such an interesting character…I really can’t say why, but this actress who I know from movies like Crash and Mission: Impossible 3 kind of, sort of fits my bill for what the Cook could possibly look like, especially as we get to know her character more and more.

Spiro Teluman: Nuufloeau Joel Seanoa

Image courtesy of ibtimes.co.uk

This guy is actually a WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) Superstar with his ring name being “Samoa Joe.” He fits the bill for what I imagined Spiro Teluman to look like; a big, brutish man who secretly makes weapons to aid the rebellion.

Zacharias Ferrar: Kendrick Sampson

Image courtesy of the actor’s IMDB profile

Another go-to of mine when it comes to POC male characters with lighter eyes, but I thought he’d still be able to pull off the quieter, more softer brother to Marcus.

Shaeva: Sabaa Tahir

Image courtesy of the author’s Twitter account

Why not have the author of the dang series make an appearance if they ever make it a cinematic adaptation? I think if she ever wanted to go into acting, why not have her play the role of the Soul Catcher we meet in the second title?

Musa of Adisa: Sam Asghari

Image courtesy of spockandshristine.com

I could be WAY off base with this one, but based off my impression of Musa (aka “The Beekeeper), he’s this model-esque hunk of dream boat, and the man who’s dating Britney Spears seemed to physically fit what I imagined the smug, charismatic prince consort who has the magical ability to control lesser fey creatures.

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Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell