Book Review: Hollowland

Hollowland (Hollows #1)
Author: Amanda Hocking
Format: Kindle
Genre: YA Dystopian, Paranormal
Publication Date: October 6, 2010

Synopsis:

Hollowland - the first book in the young adult dystopian series The Hollows...

"This is the way the world ends - not with a bang or a whimper, but with zombies breaking down the back door."

Nineteen-year-old Remy King is on a mission to get across the wasteland left of America, and nothing will stand in her way - not violent marauders, a spoiled rock star, or an army of flesh-eating zombies.

I read Amanda Hocking's Trylle Trilogy a few years ago and loved them. So when I saw the kindle version of Hollowland free on amazon, I decided to grab it.

The protagonist is Remy King, an emotionally cut off 19 year old, who is racing across the country in search of her kid brother, Max. After a zombie attack on the government quarantine the army moved Max, who was in the care of the medical ward, to another quarantine to the North.

With the help of friends, Harlow, Lazlo & Blue and her newly acquired lioness, Ripley, she treks across many states in search of Max. Along the way they run into hordes of zombies (of course), a crazy cult leader, deadly marauders and an underground refuge that seems too good to be true. The action in this book just kept coming at you. I felt tired after ready the book because of all these poor characters were put through.

I can't say that I enjoyed all the characters. For instance, Harlow was just flat out annoying to me. She was the little-sister type that was overly clingy and loved to whine over everything. I'm not sure about you but when the world is overrun by zombies and you're fighting for your life, the last thing I would want around is a whiny kid that didn't couldn't do anything. Blue was a small character but I think was very important to the story line with his medical background. They probably would have been killed off really early in the book without him around.

Lazlo and Remy would have to be my favorites, though. Remy because even though she is only 19, she is a total hard ass. She had one objective in mind, to get to her brother, and there was nothing that was going to stand in her way. Despite her being closed off and many (many) rejections, somehow Lazlo broke through her barrier and made Remy care. Sweet little love like that always makes me swoon.


I think Amanda Hocking did a good job at writing this book. As soon as I finished, I went directly to amazon and picked up the second book, Hollowmen. Be on the lookout for that review as well.

My Rating:

WWW Wednesday 7/23/14

This weekly meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading? 
• What did you recently finish reading? 
• What do you think you’ll read next?


My answers:

What are you currently reading? Torch Song by Shelley Singer. I had a busy weekend so wasn't able to really crack into this book. Just started yesterday and really liking it so far. No bad-assery going on yet but we'll see how it goes.

What did you recently finish reading? Book 2 of the Paranormals series by JL Bryan, "Johnny Nightmare". The 2nd book was almost as good as the first. It seemed to really creep by a lot slower, though. I couldn't get into it as much as Jenny Pox but I had to stick it out to the end to see what happened. Bryan left it with a cliffhanger so I guess I'll have to get book 3 before I go crazy.

What do you think you’ll read next? I have tons of new books in my kindle queue that I have to get through. So I'm thinking about starting From the Wreckage by Michele G. Miller.


PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT with either the link to your own WWW Wednesdays post, or share your answers in a comment here (if you don’t have a blog).

WWW Wednesday 7/16/2014

This weekly meme is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

• What are you currently reading? 
• What did you recently finish reading? 
• What do you think you’ll read next?


My answers:

What are you currently reading? I’m reading book 2 of the Paranormals series by JL Bryan, "Johnny Nightmare". Genre is Paranormal Young Adult and I'm really enjoying it. I've read alot of people didn't find JL Bryan's books realistic (duh it's paranormal) but I haven't really found anything I don't like yet.

What did you recently finish reading? Book 1 of the Paranormals series by JL Bryan, "Jenny Pox". Jenny Pox was an awesome start to a great series. Jenny can't touch anyone without spreading a plague. With no mother, an alcoholic father, and no friends, her life is pretty boring. I loved the twists and turns in this book. I can't wait to read the other books in the series.

What do you think you’ll read next? Torch Song by Shelley Singer. It's supposedly a kick-ass heroine in a post apocalyptic world. Who wouldn't love that?


PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT with either the link to your own WWW Wednesdays post, or share your answers in a comment here (if you don’t have a blog).

Fever by Lauren DeStefano

Fever (The Chemical Garden #2)
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Format: E-Book
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
Publication Date: February 21, 2012

Synopsis:

Rhine and Gabriel have escaped the mansion, but danger is never far behind.

Running away brings Rhine and Gabriel right into a trap, in the form of a twisted carnival whose ringmistress keeps watch over a menagerie of girls. Just as Rhine uncovers what plans await her, her fortune turns again. With Gabriel at her side, Rhine travels through an environment as grim as the one she left a year ago - surroundings that mirror her own feelings of fear and hopelessness.

The two are determined to get to Manhattan, to relative safety with Rhine’s twin brother, Rowan. But the road there is long and perilous - and in a world where young women only live to age twenty and young men die at twenty-five, time is precious. Worse still, they can’t seem to elude Rhine’s father-in-law, Vaughn, who is determined to bring Rhine back to the mansion...by any means necessary.

In the sequel to Lauren DeStefano’s harrowing Wither, Rhine must decide if freedom is worth the price - now that she has more to lose than ever.

All I can say is Wow. I am behind on the Chemical Garden trilogy. I read Wither two years ago and forgot to go back to Fever when I received the release notice. I have finally found some time to read the book and I wasn't disappointed. 

If you are familiar with this trilogy, you know how tragic these books can be. A perfect dystopian feel. Fever is definitely not as grave as it's predecessor, Wither, but it still has it's dark, dreary feel to it. I remember at times while reading Wither, I had to put the book away and go read something else. Anything else, actually. Just to get away from the depressing tone.

Fever wasn't as heartbreaking to me but I didn't zip through this book like I normally would. Even though, I loved the book and the way Lauren DeStefano paints the perfect imagery in her writing, this book just seemed to drag. The bad luck for the couple just kept coming and got worse at each turn of the page. At some points, I just wanted it to end because I didn't think I could take anymore. 

Fever picked right up where Wither left off with our couple running for their lives.  They have finally escaped the horrible mansion and are on their way to New York to find Rhine's brother, Rowan. On their way they are side swept into another part of their changed-for-the-worse world; a carnival of girls. From there, we are introduced to some new characters. A mad-woman, Madame, who has many plans for Rhine. Lilac and her malformed daughter, Maddie and a few other thorny characters. 

Rhine and Gabriel out in the real world and away from the mansion brings a whole new light and questions to their relationship. Does Rhine really love Gabriel or was he a way to escape? Are they finally going to be together before the disease catches up to them or are things just so different that they get ripped apart? 

I went into the book with tons of questions and ended the book with even more. I can't wait to pick up the next book, Sever, to find  the answers. If dystopians are your thing and you haven't picked up these books yet, I really recommend that you do. You definitely won't be disappointed. 

My Rating:

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me (#1)
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Format: E-Book
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
Publication Date: November 15, 2011

Synopsis:
I have a curse
I have a gift

I am a monster
I'm more than human

My touch is lethal
My touch is power

I am their weapon
I will fight back

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

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

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

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

Many authors try to their hearts content to get the feelings of their characters across the page and to reach the readers. I've read some books that fail completely but then there are some authors like Taherah Mafi who really has the gift for it. From the very first page I could feel the pain that the protagonist, Juliette, felt. The coldness of her surrounding, her family, her life. When she was scared or ready to give up, I felt that way as well. It really leapt off the pages like a 3D movie. 

We join Juliette while she is locked away in a mental institution. She hasn't seen her family in years and hasn't spoken a word in 264 days. She is all alone. Then Adam, her new cellmate, crashes into her world and completely flips it upside down. Adam is the dreamy guy that any girl who would want. He protects you, he loves you, he is your everything. The only problem is Adam has a few secrets. Would you trust him? 

People are trying to make Juliette into a weapon. They see her as a tool, as a means to and end. Is she to the point in her life where she wants to give up and just be what they want? Or can she overcome herself and become a warrior. Fight the wrong and make it right? 

I absolutely could not put this book down. It sucked me in from the beginning and I found myself wanting, no needing, the next book to already be here.

My Rating:

Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

Inside Out (Insider #1)
Author: Maria V. Snyder
Format: E-Book
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
Publication Date: April 1, 2010

Synopsis:

Keep Your Head Down.

Don't Get Noticed.

Or Else.

I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? The only neck at risk is my own…until I accidentally start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution.

The scrubs have a boring life, very monotonous to say the least. They have a very strict schedule and if you don’t follow the rules, the ‘Pop Cops’ will definitely make you see their way or you’ll be introduced to “Chomper”. Trella, a scrub pipe cleaner, is known as the ‘Queen of the Pipes’. She knows the inside like the back of her hand. And usually, if she isn’t where she’s supposed to be, she’s probably somewhere crawling around in the pipes. Being in the pipes, Trella learns secrets. One she doesn’t want to know but all in the same, that secret pushes her into a series of events that ultimately leads into a rebellion. 

At first, I really didn’t like this book. Just because I really couldn't get into it. The story line has many twists and turns and it’s interesting to try and figure out what really is going on but not interesting enough to say I was hooked from the start and couldn't put it down. ‘

It wasn't until a out halfway through I found myself getting engrossed with the book. I thought I had everything figured out, that everything was going to end badly. But there was always some twist that blindsided me; even to the last page Maria had me guessing. Inside out is a definite read if you like those books that keep you in the dark and pop out at you when you are least expecting it.

My Rating: